States yet to reward ’85 Eaglets

More than one month after President Muhammadu Buhari directed state governments to rewards their indigenes who were members of the Golden Eaglets squad that won the FIFA U-16 World Cup in China in 1985, no state government has implemented the directive.

President Muhammadu Buhari had assured the batch of 1985 Golden Eaglets that his administration will fulfil the promises made that time at a reception held at Dodan Barracks with the players.

On November 11, three days after the U-17 team won the World Cup in Chile, the president, in a statement signed by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity Mallam Garba Shehu, said it had been brought to his attention that a directive he gave to the state governments at the time had not been complied with.

“It is a pity that those promises were never fulfilled. It is unfortunate that our players, who did us proud on the world stage went unrewarded for their efforts, despite a presidential directive to the state administrators that they be honored in their home states,” Buhari said.

He added: “The houses, scholarships and naming of streets after each player were supposed to have been catered for by the states.”

It also noted that shortly after the commitment was given, the then military administration of General Muhammadu Buhari was replaced and that despite repeated representations made to succeeding governments by the players and their officials, the promises made were left unfulfilled.

“I apologise for whatever embarrassment and disillusionment your country these and

in raised then dashed hopes may have caused you,” he said. “My government will do all within its power to remedy the situation”, Buhari was quoted as saying.

But Daily Trust investigation reveals that apart from the Federal Government that sponsored the players on a trip to watch the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, and a few others who had streets named after them in their states of origins, no scholarship or house have been given to the players.

A goalkeeper with the team, Imama Amapakabor, now coach of Rangers Enugu said when they came back from China, the Rivers State government named streets after him, Binebi Numa and Tenworimi Duere who were indigenes of the state.

He however said unfortunately politics of the state claimed the street named after him as “the street, in the riverine area of the state capital was renamed with another because I am from the upland part of the state.

“I did not want to talk about it when they said the reigning World U-17 champions are properties of the Federal Government. To me, this is the same thing that was done to us 35 years ago and as I am talking to you today nothing has come out of it.

“If I have the opportunity to meet the boys I will tell them to take a look at some us who have passed through the same road 35 years ago; and that is why I am not interested in the call for the establishment of an Education Trust Fund for them. Let us be frank to ourselves in this country, if this government goes out, the next government will not look at the boys’ direction, and the bureaucracy will take about two to three years for the scholarship to be a reality. For me whatever they want to give these boys let them do it now.”

Amapakabor added that if he has the opportunity of meeting President Muhammadu Buhari, he will tell him that it is time he gets his benefits.

“I still remember that when we were to be given monetary reward the late Group Captain Tony Ikhazobor, may his soul rest in peace, said we were still young so we should be given scholarship but I will tell you that all the 17 of us living today, including Kingsley Aikhionbare who passed on, did not get the scholarship.

“The CBN bonds, there was none of us that got it too and even the decision that the State governments in the 19 states to host us never came to pass but the only thing we benefited was that we went to Mexico to watch the 1996 World Cup Finals.

Another member of the team, Carlos Binebi Numa, who is now a member of the management team of Bayelsa United, informed that streets were named after some players in some state like the old Bendel, Imo and Rivers, but for the scholarship, no papers for the share what they promised us was a developmental one, a standard N1,000 bond but were not paid any dividends by the government.

His conclusion was that the players were raised up and left there to fend for themselves, “but now that the opportunity has come we thanked the president for coming back to redeem the pledge he made 35 years ago to put us on the normal footing. I really appreciate the fact that he remembered us for the glorious feat of the past which to me is a very good thing.”

Baldwin Bazuaye, who is now a coach with a local club in Benin said all the nine players that made the team from the old Bendel State had streets named after them, while the Federal Government redeemed its promise to sponsor them to the 1986 World Cup final in Mexico, but the issue of scholarship and landed property is still being expected.

Bazuaye, who later played for the Super Eagles, said he was happy that President Buhari has reawakened the issue, and he would be happier if the rewards final come.

Jonathan Akpoborie, who was also a member of the team, told Daily Trust that he and his fellow ex-players who were part of 1985 U-16 World Cup winning team were yet to hear anything from the government, weeks after President Muhammadu Buhari promised to redeem pledges made to them 30 years ago.

In a message, the former Hansa Rostock striker added that he’s hoping they won’t have to wait for much longer considering the government’s resolve to revisit the issue.

“We are still on standby my brother, nothing yet but we are still waiting,” Akpoborie wrote.