To further demonstrate the dire situation in the team, several key players, including team captain Okotu, have deserted the team and many others are working on the option of abandoning the team. “See, the league starts on February 27, 2016 and the team has not started camping because you cannot even call on the players to get back to camp without paying them their salaries and allowances that they have not gotten in 16 months”, one source told www.calitown.com.
While government seems to look the other way while a team that use to be the football rallying point for all of Cross River and Akwa Ibom states, with stars like former Nigerian internationals, Andrew Uwe, Finidi George, Friday Ekpo, Imama Amakpakabo, John Okon Ene, donning her colours, we gather several persons are waiting in the wings to buy the team’s Pro League slot, one step short of the lucrative Nigerian Premier League.
At the Atekong, State Housing Estate camp of the team, the landlord has thrown out the team’s equipment for the team’s inability to pay rent. “The man has been patient joor! They have not paid rent for over a year and he cannot continue to wait when government is not interested in the team’s welfare and cannot even mobilize private sector support for the team. I pity Maurice Inok, the team manager and Jude Amadi, the State Director of Sports. I hear two of them bore the financial brunt of last season, it is a shameful thing to hear”, another source who elected to remain anonymous concluded.
