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Coach of the bronze-medal winning Nigerian U-23 team at Rio 2016, Samson Siasia, has revealed that he did not need to resign, as his contract expired after the Games.
He is however demanding that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), pay him “every kobo” he is owed. Siasia is owed up to five months’ salaries.
His words: “This is not really resignation; my contract was arranged to end with the Olympics. And so the contract has ended.
“What is very important is that I get every kobo that I am owed. I need the money now than ever and I believe I have really endured and I have been cooperative.”
On the interview he granted over the weekend, the former Super Eagles coach said: “What I was asked was my entire story at the Olympics and this included Atlanta camping.
“Of course a lot of things happened that I can’t be really happy about especially the way the team was portrayed. But that is over as my contract has also actually ended. What is left now is my cash and that is very, very important.”
The Minister of Youth & Sports Development, Solomon Dalung, has also waded into the payment brouhaha involving
Speaking when Siasia and his wife, Eunice, paid him a visit in his office in Abuja, on Monday, to thank him for his support and inform him that his contract with the NFF had ended, Dalung appealed to the NFF to pay Siasia and other coaches being owed.
He said: “Please, pay him his five months’ salaries. They said he has resigned, but he just said that his contract expired after the Olympics. His contract expired but you are owing him five months’ salaries and you have gone to employ a foreign coach and will pay him in dollars. It means you don’t like yourselves and nobody will sympathise with you. Please, spare me the stress of talking about this salary issue or going to war with you on it. Please, pay him and other coaches their outstanding salaries”