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FIFA Ban: Siasia Commends Odegbami, Rivers, Bayelsa Govts
… Insists Dare, Sports Ministry Offered No Help
The ongoing war of words between former Super Eagles coach, Samson Siasia and Sports Minister, Sunday Dare appears to have taken a new twist after Siasia denied ever receiving any assistance from him.
Siasia, who was initially banned for life for receiving a bribe in August 2019 by FIFA, in an attempt to manipulate the outcome of matches, has seen his punishment reduced to a five-year ban and his initial 50,000 Swiss Francs fine totally reversed.
While the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) ruled that Siasia did not receive any bribe and did not fix any match, the court said he did not report the matter when he was asked to fix matches by a club official at a club he sought to coach.
While the former Super Eagles star is grateful for the level of victory he has so far achieved in his case, he expressed reservations as to how the Sports Minister and President Muhammadu Buhari have treated him.
But the Minister, in reaction, called the former Olympic Eagles coach a liar.
The former Nantes forward who led the Dream Team to two Olympic medals(silver and bronze) in Sydney 2000 and Rio 2016 said he did not understand why the Minister was so enraged to the extent of calling him a liar.
In a chat with Thpledge, Siasia expressed gratitude to his legal team in Nigeria and Switzerland who successfully argued his case and got him a more lenient punishment.
He also thanked former national team captain, Segun Odegbami, as well as the Bayelsa and Rivers State governments for their support.
“I don’t understand which standpoint the minister is coming from. I only said the government did not assist me when I was in trouble with FIFA. I believe he is taking this fight now like his own fight because he is the one representing the government. That is the way I look at it. But I don’t lie. That is not fair to me, calling me a liar.”
“Why would I be lying when I need people to help me? I can’t begin to cause confusion when I actually need sympathy and help from people. If I said anything in an interview that he disagreed with, he could have invited me to talk, not by going to the public and start embarrassing ourselves. I have very serious issues to worry about, like trying to see how to appeal against the judgment: they said five years, now about two and a half years left. What am I going to be doing between now and then? How am I going to survive? Who is going to help me? Those are the things I am worried about.” What I am saying is that the Federal Government of Nigeria did not back me.”
As a coach, he led his country’s under-20 and under-23 sides to continental success in 2005 and 2015 respectively.
He also guided the under-20’s to a runners-up finish at the 2005 World Youth Championships (as it was known at the time) in the Netherlands.
Siasia is the most decorated African football coach at the Olympics, winning silver at the Beijing Games in 2008 and bronze at the 2016 Games in Rio.
Tinubu, represented by Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima at a formal reception in Uyo on Saturday, welcomed the governor and his supporters to the ruling party.
He pledged that Governor Eno would not be abandoned and would have no regrets about joining the APC.
According to Shettima, “The strength of any political party comes not from division, but from unity of purpose. We are here today because we understand that enduring power lies in standing together, not in isolation or internal strife.”
He emphasized that the APC is a party of the people, saying, “We believe in building bridges, not walls; in mending fences, not erecting new ones. Above all, we know that the strength of a political party lies in its people — the people are the party.”
Speaking directly to Governor Eno, Shettima added: “President Tinubu is a bridge-builder and a democrat. Your decision to join the APC is one you will never regret. You will not be humiliated or forsaken. You are home.”
Speaking through Ghana’s Finance Minister at the West Africa Economic Summit (WAES) in Abuja on Saturday, President Mahama warned that economic integration and trade cannot thrive in an atmosphere of political instability.
“Trade cannot flourish where democracy is in retreat. Investment does not land where governance is broken.
“The recent wave of instability and military takeovers in our region is not just a security concern—it is an economic emergency. We must defend democracy as a prerequisite for prosperity.
“Let West African leaders recommit to constitutional order—not as an abstract ideal, but as a practical requirement for growth. We cannot unlock trade while our region is locked in conflict,” Mahama was quoted as saying.
In January 2025, ECOWAS formally acknowledged the withdrawal of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso—now members of the Alliance of Sahel States—following tensions rooted in the 2023 Niger coup.
To this end, Mahama called for the creation of an ECOWAS Charter on Democratic Stability and Economic Development, linking good governance with access to regional investment support.
The president urged leaders to recommit to constitutional order as a practical foundation for development, rather than merely a political ideal.
Akpabio said this on Saturday at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo, the Akwa Ibom capital, during the official reception of Umo Eno to the APC.
“Governor Sheriff of Delta State thank you for joining the progressive family and moving the South South in a progressive direction.
“Governor Umo Eno, after you, Rivers State will just tumble, after Rivers State, Bayelsa will join.
“We won election with Governor Otu in Edo State and we produced an amiable Monday Okpebholo, congratulations once again for your victory.”
In April, Eno had hinted at leaving the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for APC.
The governor had blamed the internal crisis within the PDP for his decision to leave the party for APC.
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