By Jacob Ajom
The management of Rangers International Football Club of Enugu may well have fallen foul of an order by the NFA Players Status Committee that they pay a princely sum of N16.5 million being unpaid salaries and sign-on fees the club is owing  its former staff on or before 30th June, 2010.

Out of that amount, a former Nigeria international and former coach of the club, Sylvanus Okpala is entitled to the sum of N8 million. Okpala is being owed sign-on fees, accumulated salary areas  others.A breakdown of the debt to Okpala shows that he is being owed salaries for the months of October, November and December 2008 and January, February, 2009 at N50,000 monthly.

Salaries for six months from March to August 2009 at N200,000 monthly. He is also being owed sign-on fees for the 2008/09 season which amounts to a total sum of N8 million.

Apart from Okpala, Rangers are to pay Godwin Nosike a total sum of N4.7 million being monies owed him from sign-on fees, salaries and others.In similar manner, the club owes Chigozie Agbim, currently with Warri Wolves the sum of N1.3 million while Chukwu Uguala is being owed N100,000 as unpaid sign-on fees.

“They unfortunate thing is that when you ask for your pay they tell you that the governor directed that you should not be paid. They say all sorts of things about the governor and I know the governor cannot be directing on who gets paid,” Okpala said yesterday