The minister of Works and housing, Babatunde Fashola on Friday handed over Certificate of occupancy to some members of the 1994 Super Eagles team, in fulfilment of the pledge made to them for winning the 1994 African cup of Nations (AFCON).
The nation had promised the winning team, houses in different parts of he country, after the competition.
Speaking in Abuja at the handover ceremony of the C of O of the federal government allocated houses, Fashola said after 28 years of delay, the federal government intend to hasten the processes of the house allocation.
Fashola said “We anticipated that it was possible to give you allocation letter, but then you might start chasing your C of O or flat letter which might cause delay. But we want to ensure their are no more loopholes nor delays hence we decided to solve all the problems whilst you are here
“This certificate is a proof that the house is yours, all that is left is the handover which will be done at the commissioning site. This is to ensure it doesn’t delay further” he explained
Former Super Eagle player,Sunday Oliseh, While commending the federal government for the fulfillment of the promise, urged the current National team to uphold the heart of service and patriotism
He said “Everybody will now give their best to Nigeria since they now see that the government is fully behind them”
Peter Rufai, another former member of the super Eagles said the redemption of the pledge will spur the current nation team to perform better
He said “We were heartbroken when the promise tarried and this even affected the performances of the younger players. The incentive and drive have been missing because they have seen what we suffered and subsequently they lost hope. Now i believe with the redemption of our promise the current team will be hopeful and perform better knowing that there would always be a reward.”
Anthony Asielue, 1994 super Eagles World Cup team leader also noted that the nation need to learn to keep record of service and cultivate the habit of rewarding players
“Most of our players, play very well in league but when it comes to playing for the nation, you really don’t see the best of them because there are really no incentives. The government should learn to cater for them in and outside services to the nation that will help them perform better” he concluded