Fayose succumbs, approves payment of N253.6m bursary, as students’ protest looms

The Ekiti State governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, yesterday approved N253.6 million for the payment of students’ bursary for 2017/2018 and scholarship awards to qualified students in the state. From the sum, 871 students will receive scholarship awards ranging from N60,000 to N1.5m each, while 2,645 others will collect bursary awards that range from N10,000 to […]

The Ekiti State governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, yesterday approved N253.6 million for the payment of students’ bursary for 2017/2018 and scholarship awards to qualified students in the state.

From the sum, 871 students will receive scholarship awards ranging from N60,000 to N1.5m each, while 2,645 others will collect bursary awards that range from N10,000 to N150,000 each. Fayose’s gesture came 24 hours to the deadline the students of tertiary institutions in Ekiti State, under the aegis of the Federation of Ekiti State Students Union, had given him on a  massive protest they dubbed “mother of all rallies,” which they had threatened would start today over non-payment of bursary to them by his administration.

A statement released yesterday by the state’s Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Jide Egunjobi, in Ado Ekiti said 30 overseas doctoral students would collect N1.5m each from a total scholarship sum amounting N45m, 184 Law students would receive N150,000 each as bursary from a total sum amounting to N27.6m, while 450 undergraduate students would receive N60,000 each as scholarship from a total sum amounting to N27m.

The Commissioner explained that 15 physically-challenged students would receive N60,000 each as scholarship, while 198 students studying for their Master’s in Nigeria would receive N250,000 each.

In addition, 17 students studying for their Master’s degree in foreign countries would get N500,000 each, while 160 PhD students (Nigeria) would receive N750,000 each.

Egunjobi, who said disbursement would be in tranches, explained that the governor approved the payment after verification of qualified students and added that payment would be made into verified bank accounts of beneficiaries to avoid manipulation.

“The first tranche is the scholarship for 450 undergraduates  and 15 physically-challenged students. The disbursement to their banks will commence on March 21, 2018. Other tranches will follow as soon as the disbursement is completed,” he said.

The Commissioner stated that Fayose had earlier disbursed the outstanding 2012/2013 bursary awards in four tranches to 7,070 students at the rate of N10,000 per student, which amounted to a total sum of N70m.

The students have, however, to embark on the protest. FESSU president, Idowu Adewumi, said it was wrong for the government to have withheld the entitlements. Adewunmi said, “The protest will continue because out of about 20,000 students that applied for the bursary, only 2,000 were taken care of in the payment. 

 “Part of our demands was that the governor must settle the crisis leading to the strike at the College of Education, Ikere Ekiti. As we speak, salaries have not been paid and the crisis has been affecting our colleagues. Again, Fayose promised FESSU a union bus and he has not fulfilled that up till now, so we are proceeding with the planned protest.”