Shock As N71.2 Billion In Student Loan Funds Vanish — Universities, Top Officials Under Probe
A staggering N71.2 billion out of the N100 billion allocated for Nigeria’s student loan scheme has gone missing, prompting a full-blown investigation by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
The revelation has sent shockwaves across the country, sparking outrage among citizens and education stakeholders.
According to ICPC spokesperson Demola Bakare, the Commission’s Special Task Force launched an urgent investigation after uncovering serious discrepancies in the disbursement of funds managed under the Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).
Only N28.8 billion of the earmarked N100 billion was actually disbursed to students, leaving over N71 billion unaccounted for.
Top government officials, including the Director-General of the Budget Office, the Accountant General of the Federation, and the Executive Director of NELFUND, have been summoned to provide documentation and clarify their roles in the scandal. Senior Central Bank officials have also been invited to assist with the probe.
“The Commission confirmed that a clear case of discrepancies has been established,” Bakare stated. “We are extending our investigation to include beneficiary institutions and individual student recipients.”
Shocking details from the probe reveal that 299 institutions received N44.2 billion overall, yet over N71 billion from the combined contributions of TETFund, FAAC, and the EFCC remain unaccounted for.
In a further bombshell, Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu, accused over 51 higher institutions of engaging in unauthorized deductions and fraudulent practices designed to sabotage the Tinubu administration’s landmark student loan initiative.
“This is not just mismanagement — it’s a national betrayal,” Issa-Onilu declared, calling on anti-corruption bodies to clamp down on institutions exploiting the student loan program. As the ICPC digs deeper, Nigerians await answers — and justice — for what could be one of the most explosive education funding scandals in recent history.
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