A FORMER Super Eagles captain, Christian Chukwu, has revealed that the Nigeria Football Federation still owes him salary from his time as the country’s male senior national team head coach.
Chukwu led the team to a bronze medal at the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia.
He was however relieved of the job in June 2005 during the qualification campaign for the World Cup in Germany.
The former skipper of the then Green Eagles while speaking on why local coaches are not treated well by Nigeria, said he had a better experience managing in Kenya and Lebanon.
“They owe Nigerian coaches. They don’t owe foreign coaches. It is a problem. You take on an indigenous coach who takes a cheap salary, and you owe him,”
“Is it proper? Are you encouraging him to do his job? I am still being owed up to today. They are still owing me till tomorrow. My files are there with the NFF. There is nothing I can do [to get them to pay me]. The file is there. Go to their office, and you will see how much they owe me. Not only me, but other indeginuos coaches are being owed too. Some are late,” the former Enugu Rangers captain told The Althletic Nigeria.
When asked what he did to get his money, he retorted by asking, “What can I do?”
Speaking with pressmen in 2023, the late Super Falcons manager, Godwin Izilien expressed displeasure at the NFF’s refusal to pay him his $12,000 for winning the title of the Women’s African Cup of Nations in South Africa in 2004.
Izilein lamented that despite pleas to the federation over the years, they fell on deaf ideas.
Also, current Falcons coach, Randy Waldrum called out the football house for failing to fulfill to fulfill their contractual obligations with him
Meanwhile, the Glass House, through Director of Communications, Ademola Olajire, in 2023 admitted that the football house was cash-strapped and couldn’t pay its workers.
“The NFF has been facing huge financial challenges and there is an ongoing effort to resolve all the issues relating to unpaid wages,” Olajire told BBC Sport Africa.
“It is unfortunately not something to be proud of and the new board of the federation is working hard to resolve the problems,” he concluded.