NANS Warns Varsities Against Withholding NELFUND Refunds
The National Association of Nigerian Students, Zone C, has warned tertiary institutions across the North-Central region against withholding refunds due to students whose tuition fees were paid before the disbursement of loans by the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.
The NANS Zone C Zonal Coordinator, Abiola Babatunde, said students who had already benefited from the Federal Government’s student loan scheme should not be subjected to additional financial hardship.
Babatunde said the association was concerned that some students who paid their tuition fees before receiving NELFUND disbursements had yet to receive refunds from their institutions, despite the schools having subsequently received payments from the Fund.
He said, “We are also deeply concerned about the delay in the refund of NELFUND payments by some institutions. Several students who benefited from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund had already paid their tuition fees before the loan was disbursed, yet many institutions have continued to withhold their refunds for months.
“This is unacceptable and defeats the purpose of the intervention. NANS Zone C demands the immediate refund of all NELFUND payments due to affected students.”
The association further warned tertiary institutions against using students’ refunds for administrative convenience, insisting that institutions must return the money to beneficiaries once their tuition obligations had been settled by NELFUND.
“Institutions must stop frustrating beneficiaries by unnecessarily delaying the repayment of funds that rightfully belong to students.
“We will not tolerate any attempt by institutions to use students’ NELFUND refunds for administrative convenience or any other purpose,” Babatunde said.
The position of NANS Zone C comes amid scrutiny of the implementation of the student loan scheme, with NELFUND previously warning institutions against delaying or refusing to refund students who paid their fees before the Fund subsequently settled the same obligations.
In July, NANS also published the names of 39 tertiary institutions it said had received NELFUND tuition payments on behalf of eligible students but had yet to refund students who had earlier paid their fees.
NELFUND management also disclosed that it was investigating about 34 institutions over alleged failure to refund students, following complaints from affected beneficiaries. The Fund said it was working with NANS, its internal auditors and anti-corruption agencies on some of the cases.
NANS Zone C consequently urged tertiary institutions across Kwara, Benue, Niger, Kogi, Plateau, Nasarawa and the Federal Capital Territory to review their fee structures and abolish charges that place unnecessary financial pressure on students.
The association said every payment made by students must translate into corresponding services, stressing that institutions should provide functional lecture halls, laboratories, hostels, healthcare facilities, water and electricity.
Beyond the refund issue, NANS Zone C criticised the imposition of what it described as excessive late-payment fees, unnecessary levies and hidden charges by some tertiary institutions across the North-Central states.
“A student who could not pay school fees early because of genuine financial hardship should not be punished with another inflated payment simply because the deadline has passed,” Babatunde said.
He urged institutions across Kwara, Benue, Niger, Kogi, Plateau and Nasarawa states and the Federal Capital Territory to review their fee policies and ensure that students receive value for every kobo paid.
The students’ body also called for improved welfare facilities, including functional lecture halls, well-equipped laboratories, decent accommodation, healthcare, water and electricity, while demanding greater accountability from institutional managements.
On campus security, NANS Zone C called on the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Department of State Services and other relevant agencies to strengthen security around tertiary institutions and their host communities.
The association also issued a two-week ultimatum to tertiary institutions in the zone that had yet to conduct Students’ Union Government elections, demanding that the electoral process be commenced and concluded within the period.
Babatunde warned that institutions that failed to comply would face what he described as “legitimate and constitutional actions” from NANS Zone C.
