Taribo West made headlines on Friday.

The 51-year-old lamented the poor treatment of sports heroes in Nigeria, pointing fingers at the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, and the government.

West’s comments came at the burial of the late Nigeria goalkeeper, Peter Rufai.

Rufai, fondly called “Dodo Mayana” was Nigeria’s first-choice goalkeeper during the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON, triumph and the country’s debut at the FIFA World Cup in the same year.

He died in July 2025.

West himself was capped 42 times for Nigeria between 1994 and 2005, playing in two World Cups and two AFCONs. He also represented his country at the 1996 Olympics, winning a gold medal.

But he has sworn that his son will not represent the country.

“With this kind of example, I will never advise even my son to put his feet for this country,” West fumed.

“Do we have a Football Federation or do we have a Football Association in this Lagos State?

“That this hero, this soldier, this football evangelist, has to be treated this way in his family.

“Could you imagine that the family would be crying just to solicit in within our groups to ask for money? That is madness,” he fumed.

West’s remarks triggered a myriad of reactions on social media and offline, especially in the light of President Bola Tinubu rewarding players and officials of the Super Eagles with $100,000 cash, houses and national honours.

So, is the government failing to adequately look after our past sports heroes?

“Failure is a bit strong,” Calvin Emeka, the publisher of ACL Sports, tells DAILY POST.

“This government can’t answer for whatever the previous governments didn’t do to or for other winners.

“That’s how I see it.”

But, should it be a culture – the trend of constantly rewarding sports men and women?

“It can’t be a culture. It can’t and shouldn’t be.

“What we should have is a Federation that earns enough money to reward the players for achievements without the government getting involved,” Emeka replies.

This brings up the issue of former footballers and athletes living in penury and even dying from health issues because of money.

“Nigerians live and die in penury from health issues because of Nigeria,” Emeka points out.

“Nigeria has no social welfare plans for Nigerians. Nigeria has poor medical service or conditions.

“We need to look at this thing from this prism first before attaching sports men and women to it.”

Some of the angry reactions to West’s statements questioned if representing Nigeria was worth it.

In Emeka’s opinion, it is completely worth it.

“In any sport, any day, any time.

“It is the ultimate feeling for any sports person to represent Nigeria.

“What happens after is another matter.

“As a UNILAG student, one of the best period of my entire life to this day was when I represented Nigeria at FISU 1991.

“When they called out the lineup of Nigeria over the PA system and my name was read out, I was overjoyed.

“So, yes. It is a privilege and should never be sniffed at,” he said.

Perhaps the final word came from former Super Eagles forward, Brown Ideye, who only announced his retirement from professional football this week.

Idey wrote on X: “Footballers start saving for your future from day one. No matter how small your salary is, put something aside for your retirement.

“And pray for God to bring the right people around you.

“Most importantly, pray for a right partner that will always be there for you even after your career.

“God bless you all.”