By Johnson Nwankwo
The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council has expressed anger over the non-inclusion of the entire South-East from first phase of the disbursement of the students’ loan scheme.
It would be recalled that tertiary institutions in South East had hitherto complained that they were marginalised by the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).
Our correspondent reports that the federal government, through NELFUND, last week, announced that the sum of N2.9 billion had been disbursed to 27, 667 students as the first set of beneficiaries of the loan scheme across 19 tertiary institutions in the country. South-east beneficiaries were conspicuously missing.
Ohanaeze youths, in a statement signed by its national president, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike, described the development as unacceptable. Okwu said the reasons given by the NELFUND was unjustifiable.
Quoting him, “We completely reject the reason adduced by NELFUND as to why the South-East was conspicuously sidelined in this first phase disbursement of the federal government loan scheme.
“Without mincing words, we find this as a continuation of the age-long marginalisation of Ndigbo by some persons who don’t want the best for this country.
“We the Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide reject in its entirety the claims made by NELFUND and demand that the South-East be fully integrated into the programme.”
The group said it was saddening that Ndigbo had continued to receive second class treatment in Nigeria, adding that, “This should not continue under the current administration, which has received enormous goodwill from Ndigbo more than any other zone.”
He called on the authorities of various tertiary institutions in the region to do the needful and not become a stumbling block to the future of students.
He said, “All those who have a role to play in the verification exercise should sit up and do the needful without further delay.
“Failure to do so, we shall mark them as enemies of the youths. Our future should not be toyed with any longer.”
