“Nigerian students are now beggars in the UK” – Abike Dabiri-Erewa tells NDDC

The Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has appealed to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to pay students on its scholarship scheme in the United Kingdom.

According to her, the students had turned beggars following the non-payment of their tuition and allowances by the NDDC.

During the recent National Assembly probe of the NDDC, it was revealed that Nigerian students awarded scholarships to some universities in the United Kingdom, have been abandoned by the commission as they have not received a dime in allowance or school fees from the commission.

Many of the students who came out to complain, said the commission has refused to respond to all emails sent to them appealing for their fees to be paid or allowances released.

Some of the affected students had complained that they had been suspended by their schools for non-payment of tuition and other fees.

In a statement released yesterday by the NIDCOM spokesperson Gabriel Odu, Dabiri-Erewa appealed to the NDDC management team to as a matter of urgency, release the funds appropriated for the scholarship programme of these students.

Dabiri-Erewa made reference to a letter written to the Minister of the Niger Delta, Sen. Godswill Akpabio, dated June 18, 2020, drawing attention to the plight of the students, and urging the NDDC to pay them.

The statement in part reads;

”At the moment there have been persistent calls by the Students for urgent intervention. While deadline for payment of the fees of some of the students have expired or about to expire , non payment of their allowances have turned many of them to virtually become beggars”