The Nigeria Training Mortgage Fund (NELFund) has denied allegations of diverting funds allotted for the nationwide pupil mortgage scheme, stating that N54 billion has been “transparently” disbursed from the N203 billion it has obtained thus far.

Akintunde Sawyerr, managing director of NELFund, mentioned this Wednesday when he appeared earlier than the Home of Representatives Committee on Scholar Loans.

He defined that the current assertion by the Impartial Corrupt Practices and Different Associated Offences Fee (ICPC) had wrongly implicated NELFund in allegations of fund diversion. In keeping with him, the ICPC’s feedback have been based mostly on a previous media report suggesting that some 51 establishments weren’t complying with the laws guiding entry to pupil loans.

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Sawyerr said that the fund responded swiftly to the claims, prompting the ICPC to retract its particular allegation of diversion in opposition to NELFund.

“I don’t assume that has occurred ever in Nigeria, the place a safety company inside hours reverses itself on an announcement that was made”, he mentioned, however regretted that regardless of the retraction, vital reputational injury had already occurred, particularly in a scheme that originally confronted public scepticism.

Offering particulars of the fund’s operations, Sawyerr disclosed that NELFund had disbursed roughly N54 billion thus far, N30 billion to 303 government-owned tertiary establishments and N24 billion as stipends to 293,000 Nigerian college students.

In keeping with him, the disbursement adopted the authorized requirement that 90% of the obtained funds should be used strictly for pupil loans.

Giving an additional breakdown, he mentioned NELFund had obtained a complete of N203 billion, damaged down into N10 billion from the Workplace of the Accountant Common, N143 billion from TETFund, and N50 billion in recovered proceeds from the Financial and Monetary Crimes Fee, all on presidential directives.

Learn additionally: Training minister summons VCs, NELFUND over alleged diversion of pupil mortgage funds

“To date, NELFund has obtained 203 billion Naira within the checking account that we maintain on the Central Financial institution of Nigeria. I’ve to say that we take with the utmost seriousness any problems with funds being diverted inside and out of doors or associated to in any method NELFund as a result of we recognise that this venture is a sacred venture and it shouldn’t be tampered with. We recognise that we are able to stunt the expansion of not simply Nigeria however of people inside Nigeria if we don’t behave and act responsibly,” he mentioned.

In his tackle earlier, Ifeoluwa Ehindero, Chairman of the Committee, said that, the committee has been inundated with a number of stories, making waves on the social media, together with considerations about attainable diversion of mortgage funds and points that should do with the disbursement and administration of the scholar mortgage by sure federal establishments.

This, he mentioned, necessitated the assembly with the company to offer clarifications and enlighten the committee on the problems which have been making the rounds on social media.