The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) has appealed to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to offset the tuition fees and other entitlements of students on its scholarship abroad.
The Chairman of the NIDCOM, Abike Dabiri-Erewa made the call in a statement signed by Mr Gabriel Odu, Head of Media, Public Relations and Protocol Unit, stating that it was a matter of urgency.
According to Dabiri-Erewa, the NDDC needs to intervene by promptly paying other incentives to students on their scholarship scheme to guarantee their stay and education in the UK.
The statement also disclosed that a letter written to the Hon. Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Sen. Godswill Akpabio in June drew the attention of NDDC to the plight of the students that are under their scholarships scheme.
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“The commission counts on the minister’s assurances that all outstanding payments to affected students will be made.
“At the moment, there have been inundated with persistent calls by the students for urgent intervention.
“The deadline for payment of the fees of some of the students has expired or about to expire, non-payment of their allowances have turned many of them to virtually beggars,” she said
It will be recalled that the non-payment of entitlements of the students and alleged lodging of the money into private accounts of officials of the interventionist agency, formed part of allegations of corruption against the Interim Management Committee of the NDDC.
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