By FUNMILAYO ADEYEMI

The Vice Chancellor, University of Port Harcourt, Prof. Owunari Georgewill, says the Nigerian student loan programme records low participation in the South-South and South-East regions because of deep rooted cultural resistance.

Speaking at a Strategic Engagement and Sensitisation Campaign by the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) on Wednesday in Port-Harcourt, Georgewill said, families in these regions were reluctant to associate their children with debt, even as the loan was interest-free.

He, therefore, advised the government to make the programme a repayable grant, noting that this would make parents feel their children are not going to school, through loan.

?Despite our advocacy, the word `loan? is really discouraging students from participating in the scheme.

?We can coin it to be a repayable grant which will make parents feel their children are not going to school through loan,?? he said.

Speaking on the allegations of fraud associated with the scheme, he said they were baseless and the purveyors were misguided.

The vice chancellor cautioned against such reports, adding that it could potentially damage a critical national initiative.

He said the University of Port Harcourt had maintained a clean record since the programme?s inception.

According to him, Uniport charges N78,000 tuition per year which is one of the lowest, among federal universities,

He said the low tuition fee made it easier for many families to afford the payment, without subscribing to the loan scheme.

Georgewill disclosed that, of the institution student?s population of 40,000, only 1,800 were currently benefiting from the loan scheme.

David Bariereka, a former National Secretary, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), corroborated the VC, that Uniport had not been the subject of any official complaint regarding misappropriation of NELFUND disbursements.

The Managing Director, NELFUND, Mr Akintunde Sawyerr reiterated the agency?s commitment to transparency.

Represented by Dr Zino Ugboma, Director, Administration, NELFUND, Sawyerr said media narratives on the alleged fraud were prematured and could do more harm than good.

?The system may not be perfect, but we are trying to make it as humanly effective as possible.

?Sabotage and misinformation can ruin what should be a transformative programme for the country,?? he said.

Sawyerr warned against sensationalism and urged stakeholders to focus on refining the system for the benefit of Nigerians.

He disclosed that the number of students that signed up for the loan on NELFUND portal in Uniport had increased to 4,000 making the school the highest among institutions in Rivers.

?As of this morning, we have about 600,000 students nationwide who have registered for the programme. Uniport?s 4,000 students are a major part of that success.

?Of all the higher institutions in Rivers State, Uniport has the highest number of registrants,?? he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NELFUND?s officials also visited Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Port Harcourt for its sensitisation campaign. (NAN)

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