By Paul Effiong, Abuja
House of Representatives is set to probe the alleged unethical practices in the disbursement of student loans and ensure strict compliance with the Student Loans Act, 2024.
This was sequel to a motion of urgent national public importance moved during plenary yesterday by Aliyu Mustapha.
Speaking in his lead defence, the lawmaker reminded the House that the Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act, 2024, was enacted to ensure transparent, timely and equitable access to interest-free loans for all students pursuing higher education.
He also observed that significant progress had been made in the programme, while over half a million applicants and the disbursement of over N54 billion had been given to beneficiaries across the country;
According to the lawmaker, the National Orientation Agency, NOA, and NELFUND have uncovered some institutions who received the loan but failed to notify beneficiaries or update financial records, which is a violation of NELFUND’s Guidelines and has raised serious concerns over transparency and accountability.
He added that the Federal Ministry of Education had initiated a probe into alleged unauthorised deductions from student loans by some universities, describing the act as a gross violation of public trust and a breach of the Student Loans Act, 2024;
“We are concerned about reports of mismanagement and lack of proper verification, including instances where tertiary institutions upload inflated school fees on the NELFUND portal, cases of final-year students receiving loans after graduation and disbarments made to tertiary institutions even after students have fully paid their tuition fees to avoid delay,” he said.
Meanwhile, the green chamber has adjourned plenary until June 17.
