July 10, (THEWILL) – The Sokoto State Government has commenced the payment of three years of unpaid fees of indigenous students, studying at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, under the state scholarship board.
Chairman, State Scholarship Screening Committee, Alhaji Nasiru Dantsoho, disclosed this during Monday’s screening of the students benefiting from the State Scholarship Sponsorship.
Dantsoho noted that the present government has inherited three years of unpaid education sponsorship of students from the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.
He said the essence of the ongoing verification exercise was in view of making payments to the institution’s authorities and enabling students to enjoy uninterrupted semester examinations and academic sessions.
The Committee Chairman recalled that the state administration, led by Governor Ahmad Aliyu, having assumed office recently, has inherited about three years of unpaid Scholarship payments to the university, which prompt the institution to reject students of Sokoto indigenes.
He maintained that the immediate past administration has left a high bulk of debts for the present state government, especially in the area of scholarship sponsorship of indigenous students within Nigeria and overseas.
His words: “The situation in which our students were rejected warrants us to embark on the screening to make sure only Sokoto Students benefit from the payments.”
He assured that the panel has screened all the students from the 23 local government areas who are studying in Usman Danfodio University Sokoto, adding that, the panel is ready to organise similar exercises to students of other institutions if the need arises.
A cross-section of students interviewed expressed appreciation to the state government, saying that the present situation has encouraged and hope toward pursuing their academic activities on scholarship.
Tunde Omolehin is an award-winning Journalist with prose in investigative and storytelling that is connecting the dots between the under-reported communities and policymakers to ensure good governance and accountability.
