Pay coaches directly: 'Ghost' Mulee

What you need to know:

  • “When the government sends money to the federation, they use it for other purposes and after some time the salary arrears accumulates to huge amounts that they are unable to clear.
  • National team coaches should be treated just like government employees and their salaries should be wired directly to their accounts,” advised Mulee.

Former Harambee Stars coach Jacob “Ghost” Mulee has called on the government to pay national team coaches directly in future to put an end to the rampant cases of unpaid salaries.

This comes in the wake of Sebastien Migne issuing an ultimatum to the Football Kenya Federation to clear his three-month salary arrears by October 15 or else he will vacate his position as head coach of Harambee Stars.

Migne, who was unveiled in May, has not received his salary for the months of July, August and September and is highly likely to down his tools just like his compatriots the late Henri Michel and Bernard Lama in 2012 and 2006 respectively.

Mulee, the last coach to take Kenya to the Africa Cup of Nations in 2004, shares in the frustrations of the Frenchman having endured an even longer spell without pay during his most successful stint at the national team.

“I think there is no coach who has broken my record of not being paid. I went for eight months without pay and I only received my salary after we qualified for the Cup of Nations. If we hadn’t qualified I don’t know if I would have received my pay. That’s why I said I don’t think I am the right person to take Kenya to Tunisia,” revealed Mulee.

It was put to him that a common bait dangled by the federation in negotiating contracts with foreign coaches is that the government will pay their salaries.

However, Mulee insists that coaches should be treated as government employees and be included in the government’s payroll.

“I have worked under more than five federation chairmen and we have always had this issue of unpaid salaries for coaches. The best way to solve this is the government to pay the coaches directly not through the federation.”

“When the government sends money to the federation, they use it for other purposes and after some time the salary arrears accumulates to huge amounts that they are unable to clear.

National team coaches should be treated just like government employees and their salaries should be wired directly to their accounts,” advised Mulee.