Cameroon’s national soccer team captain, Samuel Eto’o has been handed a fifteen match ban for inciting his teammates to revolt against how the team is managed. The players refused to travel to Algeria for a friendly game, in what the Anzhi striker described as a protest action along the lines of the “Arab Spring” revolutions that led to the fall of the Presidents of Tunisia and Egypt, the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot) said in a statement on Friday.
Samuel Eto'o incited his team mates to revolt says Fecafoot
Eto’o told a disciplinary hearing on Monday 12 December that incompetence, dishonesty and injustice were the hallmarks of football managers in Cameroon. He said the players were treated like “kids” and their refusal to play against Algeria was a sign of protest against this state of affairs.
The players who were in Marrakech, Morocco for a friendly tournament, had insisted that they would not travel to Algeria except authorities pay up a customary appearance fee of FCFA 500,000 each they get at every national team camp, which had not been handed them on that occasion.
Fecafoot says its officials and those of the Ministry of Sport held several meetings with the players, particularly the captain, his deputy Enoh Eyong Takang and other senior players: Idriss Kameni, Jean Makoun and Alexandre Song but the players refused to budge.
The Federation says Eto’o failed to explain why the players refused to travel although the Algerian Federation offered to pay $30,000 once the team arrived in Algeria while the Cameroon Ministry of Sport dispatched FCFA 15 million.
DEMANDS
From the statement issued by the disciplinary council, it appears that the players, under the leadership of their captain, had made other demands which they wanted to be met.
- The players wanted an increment in the match bonuses they are handed during friedlies
- That the team captain be consulted the federation signs contracts for any friendly match
- Have the players fly in first class
- That the captain have a copy of the federation’s contracts with its main sponsors
- That what ever payments are made by these sponsors are given to all of the team’s staff
- That the payment of appearance be obligatory at all friendly matches
- That the authorities pay a symbolic fee to the players for their participataion in the friendly game against Algeria
- That the rate of match bonuses be reviewed (increased) ahead of the 2013 Africa Cup and 2014 Wold Cup that start next year.
“The players may have been right in their demands but their style and manner of seeking redress was bad,” a Senior Official in the Federation told me. He also felt Eto’o and vice-captain Enoh Eyong Takang – who has been banned for two games – had slighted authorities and had to have their wings clipped.
The statement following the disciplinary hearing says Eto’o described the vice-President of Fecafoot as “Papa menteur” (a lying old man).
SOLDIERS
Apparently, Eto’o and Eyong are being punished for protesting. These are players and their role (in the words of the official who spoke to me) is to obey orders like soldiers.
The fact that the Federation and the Ministry of Sport did not agree on who was to pay the said appearance fees (an aspect that transpires in the disciplinary council’s statement) has been conveniently brushed aside.
Authorities have argued that the money finally came on the eve of the match and that the Algerians were ready to pay. But does that absolve them from accusations of incompetence?
If it was possible to get FCFA 15 million on the eve of the game after the players threatened to boycott the game in Algeria – why had the authorities not done so earlier? Didn’t the players make present their demands at the start of the camp in Morocco?
Why, even for courtesy sake, were the players not told before that they were going to play in Algeria for free? And was it normal – for Cameroon’s image – that Algerians be called upon to pay fees which should be the duty of Cameroonian authorities?
Refusing to play a game is certainly reprehensible. In addition, some of the players’ demands (mentioned above) seem a stretch too far. However, not all the persons responsible for the fiasco have been judged or punished.
Federation officials who spent their time warning and threatening the players, are the same people who wrote reports used against the players, and are the same people who appeared as witnesses to testify against the players. What does that say about fairness and justice?
Apparently, Eto’o picked the wrong crowd to start an “Arab Spring” uprising against.
He has 10 days to appeal the verdict of the disciplinary council. However, if his 15 match ban is upheld it would mean the end to his international career. It isn’t a secret that many would love to see him gone, though. He has often been criticised for an overbearing grip on the team, staff and officials. Such a ban would also send a warning to any potential dissidents in the ranks of the Indomitable Lions.
However, it leaves a rather wealthy and popular loose cannon, who knows enough to rock the federation’s stable. This may come to haunt those who took the decision in the long run.
Football in Cameroon has been the only political party that unites the 2o million people be it north, east south & west. When the germ of grand Pa Mbiya Paul is cutting across every sector of the people’s happiness. What ‘d we expect of his official. Who will be a good “Mbiya Followers” without portraying the styles or ways of their mentor? Dictatorship, Embezzlement, torture, crucifixion of those who are out spoken. If they have got love for the nation they are officiating for, then they should mind before taking anti sportsman decisions that will call for tension & unrest to the souls & emotions of football lovers.
Since U want the international professional footballers to be like soldiers why then U recruit the army to take over the national team as U have always done so that there will never be a no.
Lastly was the “Arab Spring” in Tunisia & Egypt a success? Was it a judge course?
U have invited the “Arab Spring” to Cameroon & this will take a judge course
It is a systemic failure folks. Nobody in the government has anything to offer. Cameroon is abject failure. This is the beginnning of things to come. This is exactly how civil wars beginnning.
who can blame Samu? they wanted to initiate him into that their corruption by giving him the title of leut in the army,what they didn’t understand is that giving him that title will never change the way he wants things to be done.Since in Cameroon everything that goes smooth is bad,he cant pull it off alone and so he chose the side of his dissenting colleagues who are tired of the train wreck called FECAFOOT and MINJES. They just exposed what the world knows about the very rotten regime that is running Cameroon,who always glorify in the victory of the national team but cant even pay players right under the nose of “le premiere sportif”.We cant even talk about the absolute failure of this regime after close to three decades to construct just one stadium worthy of an accomplished soccer nation like Cameroon. The devious clique only keep raping the nation of its resources as private individuals follow the example of their God to enrich themselves fabulously.Talk about a failed state? dont mention Somalia,Congo or Liberia,all those ones are better than Cameroon because even after the wars that engulfed them for decades,they are still better managers.
Cameroon is not a soccer nation! Cameroon doe not have a stadium that can host a nation! Cameroon is corrupt. Time to change! wake up. After 1990 World Cup FECAFOOT was suppose to be a role model for other african nations……..where are we today? La Republique de Corruption
Since when has a player been an associate at matches negotiations? They have their right to claim their dues and not to lack respect for the country they play for nor their federation, CAF, FIFA, their fans and worst of all fair play as the game of football is concern.
Anelka was given 18 match suspension, Eva and the host of others. Serge Branco with some players were sacked from the national team and no one complained.
A leader is a mediator between his team mates(players) and not someone taking side. Just that respect for us, football fans, that match could have been played and the rest arranged at home.”you do not wait for a market day to tell your father how bad he is in the market when you have a home”
I am dissapointed with many Cameroonians, because i see that many can sell this beautiful country of ours for a tooken.
We come and we go, football will stay. Cameroon has many footballers who are willing to express themselves. During the periods of Mbape lepe,Abega, Manga Mila and Omam, we never new we could have Eto’o. Who next?
Don’t worry we shall have more and i am with you.
Calis,
So their country has the right to disrespect them because they are players right?
As it is said somewhere in this article, the decision of the team not to play was not correct. However, we need to look at how the team is managed. What pushed the players to take such a radical stance? These very players played passionately and won the LG Cup were in Morocco – which means they are not as anti-patriotic as they are being described by some people.
You speak of the “rest arranged at home”…How many times have we heard such talk from Cameroon authorities. As far back as the 1990s authorities repeatedly said ‘play and we’ll arrange later,’ but nothing has ever been arranged. The players know this language better than you do.
I for one do not think players have to be involved in match negotiations but there needs to be transparency and proper communication. Inform them about what concerns them, as simple as that.
And could you please explain wat you mean by ‘many sell this country for a tooken?’ How did they sell Cameroon? Is it your view that Cameroon has to use people simply because they are Cameroonians?
I am sorry to say this (without knowing you), but it is such mentality that has kept Cameroonians under the subjugation of a corrupt and rudderless leadership. We prefer not to complain and ask for what is ours because that is “unpatriotic and against peace”. But day in and day out, we sit and complain in bars…that we lack jobs, people are embezzling, etc.
Eto’o is not some kind of hero and I understand that not all of his choices have been right. But if he has to be sacked for standing up and demanding that players rights be respected, so be it. One day, in the years to come, people especially players, will remember the bold steps he and the players who were in Marrakesh took against mismanagement.
Today we are calling them names: “indisciplined, unpatriotic”, etc. Yesterday the French called the UPC “terrorists and maquisard.” But those Maquisard contributed immensely to French Cameroon’s independence. Sadly, there were people then who collaborated with the enemy leading to the execution of those UPC leaders. It is the same kind of people who sat on that disciplinary council and say things like you do.
I agree with you that there will be other great attackers for Cameroon in the years to come but none will be Eto’o. Eto’o has and never will never be Milla; and Milla was not Mbappe Leppe. Each of those players are different individuals who have represented Cameroon at different epochs in the country’s political, social and cultural development. Let’s not make this a personal issue on Eto’o. Was he the only one who refused to go to Algeria? Are the others sheep led by the rope?