Samuel Eto’o, the former Barcelona and Chelsea striker, says that he will buy a house for his compatriot, former Cameroon captain Norbert Owona, whose homeless plight was featured in a documentary.
Owona, 67, represented Cameroon in the 1960s and 1970s but has recently been living rough on the streets of Douala, the city in which he played for much of his career.
After a hernia forced Owona to be admitted to hospital, Eto’o donated 500,000 CFA francs ($892) to help pay for his treatment according to Joseph Kamga, another former Cameroon international.
Eto’o, who is the most decorated African player in history, has also committed to assisting Owona in his search for a new home.
Kamga, who was a part of Cameroon’s squad for the 1982 World Cup in Spain, has been a vocal proponent of a campaign to highlight the plight of several former sports stars who have fallen on hard times since their athletic careers came to an end. Kamga noted that the conditions that some are living in are “indescribable.”
Owona had highlighted his conditions in a letter to government ministers, in which he complained that he was being forced to “live like an animal” and that it was “unfair to receive such treatment from his country."
He also said that he was unable to afford proper medical care after he spent all of his savings to pay for the care of his wife, who is suffering from cancer.