$8.5m FIFA money: Pinnick ‘orders Amadu to resign’

Amaju Pinnick, president of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), has called for the resignation of Musa Amadu, the general secretary of the football house, for challenging his authority.

According to a source close to the Glass House, the two fell out over how the $3.6million “borrowed” from the federal government during the last FIFA World Cup in Brazil would be spent.

Amadu was said to be “uncomfortable” with Pinnick’s penchant for “reckless” spending, which the NFF boss saw as insubordination.

“Amadu was not favourably disposed and was uncomfortable with the manner the NFF president wanted the money to be spent, saying Pinnick preferred spending the money with reckless abandon after the house committee said the NFF were not obliged to return the money to government’s purse,” our source disclosed on condition of anonymity.

“This affront infuriated Pinnick who asked the secretary to resign if he could not work under him, or risk being sacked.”

On Tuesday, the house committee on sports led by Godfrey Gaiya said during the budget hearing that the NFF should not return the $3.6million they got from the federal government to settle members of the Super Eagles who had threatened not to honour the round-of-16 match with France if they were not paid before the game.

According to the Glass House, they had deducted the money from the $8.5million they got from FIFA as part of their World Cup appearance fee, looking to pay it into government coffers.

But Gaiya said it was unnecessary to do so.

“Money for intervention for sports under the presidency is N5 billion and the money was taken out of it so no need to return it,” Gaiya said.

That money is now the root of the problem between Pinnick and Amadu.

Efforts to get in touch with Pinnick, Amadu and Ademola Olajire, NFF’s spokesperson, proved abortive.

Pinnick had told the house committee that the money was being kept somewhere safe, waiting for directives from President Goodluck Jonathan.

“The NFF got $1.5m for qualifiers and pre-World Cup preparations,” he said.

“FIFA gave Nigeria more money for making it to the group stage. After, the NFF got $8.5 million. The finance committee sat to look into the debt of the Federation; a bill of over N300million. $3.6 million was given by the government to the federation because there were issues concerning the players. The first thing I did was to appeal to the (executives) to return the money. The money is still intact, but it would have gone straight, but we want to do it through due process.”