Paul Edeh, President of Ratels Sports Development Foundation (RSDF) and Chairman, Benue State Football Association (BSFA) has called for equal pay for Nigeria’s men and women national football teams.
Edeh told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday that this was expedient to ensure equality and fast track the development of women football in Nigeria.
“I want to urge this country (NFF) that whatever we pay the men’s team, whatever we pay the Super Eagles players, we should also pay the Super Falcons players.
“Whatever we pay the U17 (Golden Eaglets), U20 (Flying Eagles), we should also pay the women U17 (Flamingos), U20 (Falconets) because the women need to do twice as what a man can do once to achieve their goal.
“So if they put in twice to represent the country, it is also necessary that we double whatever we pay them, in fact we should pay them more than the men,” he said.
Edeh spoke after the unveiling of Super Falcons Captain Onome Ebi as a player of Naija Ratels FC of Abuja.
He said that there was a need to pay more attention to the welfare of women players, while celebrating the legends who gave their all for the country.
“We live in a country where we don’t celebrate our women football legends.
“We live in a country where women who have done so much for the nation are allowed to float without a proper plan to recognise, celebrate and put their efforts in history books,” he said.
The football administrator canvassed that major stadiums in the country should be named after women football legends, just as we have for men.
“Today, we have the Stephen Keshi stadium in Asaba, we have several other stadiums named after men, no single stadium has been named after any woman.
”So I think part of the ways to celebrate our women football legends is to name stadiums after them,” he said.
Edeh called for all chairmen of Women football leagues to have representatives on the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) board.
“As chairman of BSFA, I want to call on the NFF congress which I belong to see how we can have equal representation in the NFF congress.
“Today, we have the chairman of of the NPFL as NFF board member, chairman NNL, Chairman NLO, but how come it is only one woman (NWFL) that is on the board, we also have three tiers of the league.
“I want to call on my colleagues that we should ensure that three women are also represented on the board of NFF for parity and equality sake,” he said.
He described the Super Falcons, nine-time AWCON champions as the most successful football team in the history of the country.
NAN reports that the pay disparity between men and women footballers has been a knotty issue in international football.
The U.S. Women’s National Soccer team (USWNT) even filled a gender discrimination lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation. (NAN)
