Paynesville — Youth and Sports Minister, Cllr. Jeror Cole Bangalu says the Unity Party-led Government was not part of the process leading to the appointment of Liberia football national team head coach, Mario Marinica and technical staff
According to Minister Bangalu the LFA took a unilateral decision in giving a contract to the Romanian.
The Romanian tactician and his technical staff were appointed back in February, succeeding Ansu Kieta who was dismissed.
Mario Marinica signed on a two-year contract with the LFA but the appointment was never approved by the Sports Ministry says Cllr Jero Cole Bangalu
Coach Marinica and technical staff's jobs hang in the balance going into the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches against Namibia and Sao Tome and Principe on June 5 and 9.
But coach Marinica has expressed his disappointment in the situation he is facing in Liberia due to three months of salary delay and not getting the needed time to train his team.
Minister Cole Bangalu, addressing the media on Thursday, described the agreement with the Coach and technical staff as embarrassing for the government.
Recently, at the LFA Extraordinary, the President of the Liberia Football Association Mustapha Raji said the Lone Star Coach complained the coach and his staff have been paid their monthly salaries for three months.
He emphasized that the government has reneged on paying coaches for months due to the lack of money syndrome from the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning.
Said Raji, "Our coaches were compensated for two months with all payments done by the LFA. We are still awaiting the national government to address the payment of the national team coaches. The coaches have threatened to depart Liberia if they don't get their salaries."
However, in an interview with reporters, Minister Bangalu said they are aware of the salary situation but the contract entered was between the football house and the coach.
"But as it was, it was the LFA that solely engaged the coach, signed the contract as LFA and verse the coach but the government must be the one to pay, " he said.
According to him, he was informed by the LFA president, Raji that the ministry entered into a memorandum of understanding that allowed the football house to arrange and sign a contract and then forward the documents, and automatically the government is charged to pay the coaches.
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Bangalu emphasized that they would ensure the Ministry, along with the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Justice are amicably involved in the hiring of local and international coaches that must be paid by the government.
Said Bangalu, "The president of the LFA tells me that they are normally the ones who do that on behalf of the government and I have yet to see that MOU. But we accept it as it is because the national team is owned by the government."
He emphasized, "We don't just leave it with the federation to handle it. We don't want a repeat of this type of embarrassment wherein the LFA will enter into a contract and we know as lawyers, that we must respect the sanity of the contract consistent with the constitution of Liberia."
He warmed federations including the LFA to avoid entering into a contract that had binding implications on the government.
"This ministry is not going to continue business as usual with any of the federations. Anything that has to do with national teams and the implications that go with it will have to be looked at and meticulously handled," he said.
Adding, "We don't want anyone coming with the notion that the government is irresponsible and just didn't care."
He, however, disclosed that the government is doing everything possible to remedy the situation, stressing that they have committed to handling the coach's situation within the next 72 hours.
This situation will be handled in terms of compensating for the damages that have been done. We will move with it because the coaches have been performing for the national team, he said.
