My attention has just been drawn to a publication making the rounds by Dino Melaye on the NELFUND initiative. Dino Melaye, in his cluelessness, has claimed that NELFUND only pays #20,000 to students in higher institutions of learning.
While we would have loved to ignore Dino Melaye’s sheer ignorance and public display of folly, it is imperative, in the interest of the national interest, to set the record straight and acquaint the public with the accurate information about the NELFUND initiative.
It is rather unfortunate and pathetic to see a former student leader who, as a Senator, did not give scholarships to any student talk down on the NELFUND initiative. It is even more disheartening to see a former student leader who is supposed to be informed make such a dolting statement publicly.
To be clear, the NELFUND initiative caters for all the fees payable by students, while the #20,000 is merely an upkeep support for students. The NELFUND initiative provides interest-free loans and upkeep. Tuition fees and other payable charges are paid directly to the respective institutions, while the upkeep is paid directly into the students’ bank accounts.
This initiative has, no doubt, made education more accessible to Nigerians who intend to pursue higher education, particularly by reducing the financial barriers. The official NELFUND platform clearly distinguishes between institutional payments and upkeep payments, making it intellectually dishonest for anyone to reduce the entire initiative to the #20,000 upkeep component.
Going forward, we call on Dino Melaye, who has obviously been a comedian since he lost his return bid to the Senate, to desist from misleading the public and refrain from openly showcasing his level of lack of information.
If he must play politics, he should seek knowledge and play politics with facts and issue-based campaigns.
Nigerian students deserve informed discourse, not uninformed commentary from people who ought to know better. The NELFUND initiative is far bigger than the #20,000 upkeep, and any attempt to deliberately present it otherwise amounts to a gross misrepresentation of the facts and sheer display of ignorance.
We therefore advise Dino Melaye to acquaint himself with the facts before rushing to the public space to display his ignorance. If he wishes to criticise the policy, he is free to do so, but such criticism must be founded on facts, not ignorance, misinformation and a deliberate distortion of an initiative designed to break financial barriers to higher education.
It is obvious that Dino Melaye is short of ideas and has resorted to attacking a policy that millions of Nigerians, students and families are benefiting from. Rather than engaging with the facts and acknowledging the impact of the NELFUND initiative, he has chosen to reduce a comprehensive intervention to the #20,000 upkeep component, thereby exposing his lack of understanding of the scheme. How pathetic!
Millions of Nigerian students and their families are benefiting from the NELFUND initiative, and it is rather unfortunate that someone who once occupied a position of leadership in the student movement would choose to misinform the public instead of contributing meaningfully to a programme that is easing the financial burden of higher education.
Dino Melaye should focus more on his already washed-up political life or, perhaps, enjoy his political sabbatical and allow those who are genuinely committed to improving the lives of Nigerian students to do their work. If he must speak on matters concerning Nigerian students, he should first seek knowledge, acquaint himself with the facts.
Signed:
Dist. Comr. Akinteye Babatunde Afeez, GCNS
President, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS)