A top member of the glorious Super Eagles team that made Nigeria proud at two different World Cups, Samson Siasia has said he needs a whopping N36m to appeal the life ban sanction imposed on him by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) over alleged match-fixing.
Siasia, who made this known on Wednesday, said failure to secure the money would affect his appeal of the life ban. He stated that the inability to get the money before October 10, which is few days away would mean that he can no longer appeal the sanction.
The ex-international therefore appealed to the Federal Government and Nigerians for help, reiterating that he was innocent of the allegations. He said, “My mum is with kidnappers for almost three months, friends and my government have abandoned me. It costs N36m to start my appeal against FIFA ban at CAS. It’s crazy. If I don’t pay before October 10, the appeal off.”
Siasia’s outcry is coming 25 days after the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) offered to render legal support to him. The NFF said it had set up a team of lawyers to review the life ban sanction imposed on former Nigeria player. While Siasia’s 79-year-old mother, Beauty Ogere, was kidnapped on July 5, FIFA banned him on August 25.