Emma Jemegah

The unending crisis in Heartland FC of Owerri has continue to fester with the supporters calling on the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodima to audit the club’s accounts.

Apparently reacting to the team’s Media Director, Solomon Onu, in a radio programme during the week, that the management used the players’ December salaries to execute league games, the supporters’ club vice chairman, Prince Stephen, who was shocked at Onu’s defence implored the government to appoint auditors to look into the club’s finances.

Onu, in his defence, had claimed the management executed league games with N3 million in the three extra fixtures during the period amounting to N9 million, while asserting that the monthly bill of the club is N17 million.

Prince Stephen demanded to know what the balance of N21 million was used for. He also queried why the feeder team that was supposed to get N30,000 a month from the monthly allocation as directed by the government had not been paid in the last seven months,

“As supporters of Heartland FC, we are calling on the governor to appoint auditors to look into the account of the club in the last eight months to find out how the first N45 million given to the management to recruit players and N15 million released for two weeks camping in Nanka, Anambra State, where the club spent only three days, were spent, and what happened to the salaries of the sacked 15 players and workers’ salaries for November and who has been collecting the salaries of the general manager in the last six months.

“We also want investigation into the auto crash involving the main team and officials in Uyo, which was blamed on the slashing of the drivers’ allowance before the trip,” he said.

Stephen alleged that the government was being blackmailed, stressing that they were aware that government gave out the first set of N45 million and another N15 million before the players were sacked.

He said the media director should stop insulting Imo people who are aware of the situation in the team.