Gor Mahia’s bus was impounded by auctioneers on Tuesday after the club failed to settle outstanding allowances and salary arrears owed to former defender Wellington Ochieng.
Reports indicate that the record Kenya Premier League champions owe Ochieng over a million Kenyan shillings.
Ochieng, who played for Gor Mahia for five years before leaving in 2020, had signed a two-year deal with Tusker. However, when he left the current FKF Premier League leaders, the club owed him monies in salary and signing fee arrears.
When the club showed unwillingness to settle his dues, he moved to court to have the club compelled to pay him.
The matter escalated on Tuesday when auctioneers, armed with a court order, nabbed the team bus. Ochieng confirmed the incident to Mozzart Sport, stating that the bus had been taken by auctioneers.
He revealed that when he opted out of Gor Mahia in 2020, the club unsuccessfully tried to have him waive the money owed to him, prompting him to move to court. Ochieng stated that Gor Mahia owed him KES. 1.75 million, and despite a court order instructing them to pay him, they have never paid a cent or even reached out to him with a payment plan.
In December 2020, the cause was ruled in my favour but having them pay me the money has proved to be a difficult task,” the defender told Mozzart Sport.
The defender also added that there is no bad blood between him and his former employers and that he is only demanding what is rightfully his.
“I served Gor Mahia diligently and was always respectful to the club, and the honorable thing they should have done is to pay up what they owe me. Just like those players who have gone to FIFA, I opted to go the legal way, and the court found that my rights had been infringed. They assumed everything from when we filed the case to the end; they never bothered to respond to any of the demand letters, and here we are,” he added.
Gor Mahia’s financial troubles are well known, and this is not the first time they have failed to pay their players.
