The Youth Director of Lobi Stars Football Club of Makurdi, Coach Tony Shav has taken a swipe at the Vice Chairman of the Club, Mr. Dominic Iorfa for recently claiming that he and other selected coaches and employees who are being owed backlog of salaries are not staff of the club.
Coach Shav who maintained that the Vice Chairman was being economical with the truth insisted that they were never relieved of their jobs therefore remained employees of the club contrary to the claim of Mr. Iorfa.
He said, “just for the rec
ords since Dominic was appointed in March of this year he has not paid salaries to any of the coaches and persons working with the youth team of Lobi Stars FC neither have I received any payment as Director of LFC youth team.
“When he resumed office he called a meeting with the youth teams on 3 different occasions, two in his house and one at the Aper Aku Stadium.
“As Director of the youth team I also had one on one meetings with him and four others in his residence.
“It is very IMPORTANT TO STATE HERE THAT I am on TMS and registered under Lobi Stars FC with the LMC as the Director of the LFC youth TEAM, Mr. Dominic Iorfa can go and confirm this if he claims he is not aware.
“He cannot say he doesn’t know us as staff of the club this will be falsehood and very unfair to the hardworking and dedicated coaches and staff of the Junior team.
“When he took over as chairman he asked that we reduce the numbers of the age categories of U10 to U18 to U20, U8 and U15 respectively.
“Our last outing in the Laliga promise tournament was April 2022, five of the LFC youth team boys were selected for the national U15 call up (if he doesn’t know the youth team, coaches and players where then did these selected boys appear from and from which team and state were they from)
“Right now one of our players from the youth team by the name Iorbee is with the senior team, he was called after we were asked to stop training by Mr. Iorfa in the middle of nowhere and now Iorbee who we scouted out and put hardwork to train is with the senior team yet Mr. Iorfa claims he scouted him out this is quite laughable.
“I ran into debt because my salaries were not being paid I and my crew have not received salaries since March till we were stopped from working abruptly in June. (I and many others have ran into in debt, I am indebted to two hotels to the tune of N360,000 NOT 260,000 as earlier captured, and this is due to no funds to pay for accommodation and basic needs while I faithfully worked for LFC.
“I had to leave Makurdi at the end of June and return back home to my family so as to cut down on extra expenses while I awaited my owed salaries.
“Now its important to say that truth will always prevail over falsehood if Mr. Iorfa fears God he should come out and deny all the meetings and discussions with me and the youth team and to also deny that the youth team never existed!
“Please do the right thing and pay off the salaries owed coaches and players of the youth team. I emphasize youth team because that is my jurisdiction.
“I earnestly want to appeal to Executive Governor of Benue State, His Excellency, Governor Samuel Ortom to please intervene in this matter as many of us are going through hardship as a result of Mr. Iorfa’s unprofessional management of the prestigious Lobi Stars FC.”
