We shall pay Keshi N5m per month – Minister, NFF

Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Dr. Tamuno Danagogo, and the President of the Nigerian Football Federation,  Mr. Amadju Pinnick, said in Abuja on Friday that  arrangement had been concluded to re-engage Mr. Stephen Keshi as the Super Eagles coach.

They said the contracts details, which included his N5m monthly salary and other mouth watery incentives, had been communicated to him.
The duo,  who stated this when they appeared before the Senate Committee on Sports to defend their 2015 budget, expressed optimism that Keshi would get back to the sports ministry within the next two weeks to resume work.
The NFF boss, while answering questions from the Chairman, Senate Committee on Sports, Senator Adamu Gumba, on why Keshi’s appointment was delayed, explained that it was due to the involvement of both the technical and legal team of the federation in the arrangement.
Pinnick said, “When I got elected (as NFF boss), I went through a lot a documentation in the Federation and  I found out that in the past, coaches are employed and some issues are not sorted out.
“So I made sure that all the committee’s that had to with the employment of the coach – from the Legal Committee of the Federation to the Technical Committee – met because of the fact that we don’t want any form of issues after a coach had been engaged.
“They went through all these. Again taking into cognizance what my boss, the Minister, just said the reality on ground, oil dropping from $105 to $48 and then it started climbing, you look at the reality on ground.
“I told them clearly what we can pay based on what we are going to be expecting? Even the economy also affects the Nigerian corporate firms,  which of course, we always tried to target, to meet our budgeting provision.
“So, based on the reality on ground, it took them quite some time but I can assure you that the contract that we offer Coach Stephen Keshi is a thoroughly done contract.
“In terms of the finance, we advocated to pay N5m with other provision for housing and some other ancillary services and very realistic benefits, which of course, are all enshrined in his contract.”
Pinnick added that the contract paper was forwarded to Keshi about a week ago and expressed optimism that the federation would receive communication from him within the next two weeks.