The Minister of State for Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has dismissed allegations of fraud in the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), asserting that reports suggesting financial misconduct are unfounded. “There is no fraud in NELFUND,” he said. “The information previously reported by the ICPC was incorrect. What exists are issues related to disbursement timelines, not fraud.”

The clarification comes in the wake of a statement by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), which revealed it had launched an investigation into alleged irregularities in the loan scheme. The Commission said preliminary findings indicated that only N28.8 billion of the N100 billion released by the Federal Government had been disbursed, leaving N71.2 billion unaccounted for.

Dr. Alausa made the remarks on Wednesday following a strategic meeting in Abuja with Vice Chancellors, representatives from the National Universities Commission (NUC), the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, and the Federal Ministry of Education. Despite the ongoing probe, Alausa maintained that there is no evidence of financial misconduct within NELFUND and called on the public to remain patient as investigations continue.

The report triggered concerns among stakeholders, including the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), which threatened nationwide protests over what it described as a lack of transparency in the scheme’s implementation. The National Orientation Agency (NOA) also raised alarms over reports that some institutions were allegedly colluding with banks to delay disbursements, possibly to benefit financially.

Media reports have also alleged unauthorized deductions ranging from N3,500 to N30,000 from students’ loan-supported tuition payments. ICPC spokesperson Demola Bakare confirmed that the Commission had activated a Special Task Force to investigate the allegations.