On Monday, students under the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) blocked the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to protest the alleged mismanagement of N100 billion allocated to the Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFund) by the Federal Government.
The protest took place near the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Camp in Mowe, Ogun State, and brought traffic to a standstill for over an hour on both sides of the highway. Efforts by security officers, including the Divisional Police Officer of Mowe, CSP Afeniforo Folake, to get the students to leave were unsuccessful.
NANS National Vice President for Inter-Campus and Gender Affairs, Akinbodunse Sileola Felicia, and the Ogun State NANS Chairman, Gabriel Abiola Francis, told journalists that the protest location was chosen to draw President Bola Tinubu’s attention to the alleged corruption in the student loan program.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) recently announced an investigation into discrepancies in the loan disbursement, following reports that 51 tertiary institutions made unauthorized deductions of between N3,500 and N30,000 from students’ fees funded by NELFund.
According to reports, only N28.8 billion of the N100 billion allocated for student loans reached the students, leaving N71.2 billion unaccounted for.
Speaking during the protest, Gabriel condemned what he called the “massive corruption” surrounding the loan disbursement and demanded a presidential investigation into the alleged mismanagement.
He expressed disappointment that an initiative designed to support students had been undermined by corruption. “We call on President Bola Tinubu to launch a full investigation and ensure that anyone involved is held accountable,” he said. “No one should be above the law in this matter.”
The student leaders also demanded that the ICPC release the names of the 51 institutions allegedly involved in the unauthorized deductions. They described these schools as “anti-student” and threatened to declare them persona non grata.
They clarified that the protest was not aimed at causing hardship for road users but to pressure the President into taking strong action against what they described as “national disaster and international embarrassment.”
NANS vowed to keep mobilizing students nationwide until justice is served. “We will not stop until those responsible are brought to book,” the group stated.
