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The Provost of Harvarde College of Science and Management Studies, Obada, Abeokuta, Dr Oluwatosin Adebayo, has faulted the calls for students of private tertiary institutions to benefit from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.
Adebayo argued that parents who send their children to private universities in Nigeria do so because they can afford the tuition, adding that such students should not be eligible for education loans funded by the Federal Government.
He made this known on Wednesday during a media parley and tour of the institution’s facilities.
“I won’t support those calling for the extension of NELFUND to students of private institutions.
“This is because poor people won’t send their children to where the tuition is as much as N6m, especially in these private universities. Those parents are well-to-do.
“However, the government can allow private institutions, like their government-owned counterparts, to benefit from TETFund for infrastructural development,” Adebayo said.
The provost also advised that due to alleged corruption in the student loan disbursement process, any government funding should be paid directly to verified students once the institution confirms their enrolment.
“I will also advise that, due to the alleged corruption involved in the disbursement of the student loan, the Federal Government should pay directly to each benefitting student once the institution has confirmed the authenticity of such students,” he said.
Speaking on the controversy that rocked the college two years ago regarding the running of unapproved Nursing and Law programmes, Adebayo blamed what he called “bad elements” for instigating the crisis.
He said that although the institution had since stopped running the two unapproved courses, it had re-applied to offer them again.
“All the courses currently run at the college are accredited by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE),” Adebayo said.
He listed the accredited courses as Accountancy, Economics and Management, Computer Science, Software Engineering, Business Administration, Crime Management, Public Administration, and Banking and Finance.
The provost added that the college continues to invest heavily in human capital, infrastructure, and teaching aids to enhance the quality of learning. (PUNCH)
