George Aluo, Executive Board member of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), said that the President Bola Tinubu-led administration has been very supportive of the federation.
Aluo, who spoke in Abuja on Monday, said that the federation has not had it so good like this in the recent past.
“I will say that we at NFF have not lacked support from the administration of Tinubu.
“That the Super Eagles did well at the Nations cup is because of the huge support of the President, who approved all that the Minister of Sports Development presented to him as needs of NFF.
“It was amazing to see that after the Sports Minister met with the President; the Federal Government cleared all the debts that were owed by NFF.
“The President also made sure that all the bonuses and backlog arrears were cleared,”he said.
Aluo, who commended Tinubu for his support to sports, described him as a sports friendly president.
The board member, who is also the Chairman of Nigeria National League (NNL), said that Tinubu’s support for the NFF encouraged the national team to go that far at the competition in Cote d`Ivoire.
He explained that the issue of bonus which had always been a problem and caused serious distraction in the past was not experienced.
“I remember when we went to Russia for the World Cup; the Government had to only wake up at the last minute to do a fire brigade thing for the players’ bonuses to be paid.
“We did not have such a situation in Cote d’Ivoire and to this extent I will say kudos to the President,” NFF executive board member said.
Aluo said that their major challenge at the moment was lack of corresponding support from the corporate and private individuals.
He said that football and sports generally was a big business that should not be left alone for the government to fund.
The NNL chairman said that what is expected of the government is to create an enabling environment to make it easy for corporate and individuals`s support.
“I know that the Federal Government has a policy where if you invest in sports, you will get your return on investment.
“Under Sunday Dare, the former Minister of Sports, he was able to talk to the federal government and made sports a lucrative business.
“That policy has been passed, so no corporate body will say that they are putting money in sports development without getting a tax rebate.
“I think the federal government by this development has created an enabling environment and it is now the responsibility of corporate Nigerians to tap into it,” Aluo said.
Aluo commended the NFF President, Mr. Ibrahim Gusua for his commitment and dedication in ensuring that football succeeds in the country.