Nigerian sports minister Solomon Dalung has said the leadership crisis in the country’s football has continued to fester because “there’s more money there than in the oil industry”.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) have been embroiled in a leadership tussle for the past two years since elections to the executive committee in Warri.
Dalung has now traced the crisis to the money in the game and the many selfish interests chasing this money, which he said is more than what is obtainable in the oil sector where Nigeria is one of the leading players in Africa.
“There’s more cash in football than in the oil sector and there is so much selfish interests and as a result we have this crisis,” Dalung said on a Hausa interview programme broadcast by Freedom Radio Kano Tuesday morning.
Dalung also spoke on a committee headed by former NFF president Ibrahim Galadima he set up to chart a fresh path for the country’s football, saying among other things he has been encouraged by FIFA officials to implement the recommendations of this advisory committee.
“FIFA officials have told me that the members of this committee are straightforward and trust worthy. They have finished their work and will soon submit it to me and I hope to work with their recommendations because they will move our football forward,” he promised.