Former INEC chair, Jega, wants scholarship boards scrapped

Attahiru Jega, former Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, chairman, on Saturday in Dutse, Jigawa State, called for the scrapping of states and federal scholarship boards.

Former INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega

Mr. Jega, now a lecturer at Bayero University, Kano, made the call at the maiden convocation lecture of the Federal University, Dutse, where he delivered a paper with the theme, “Reforming the Nigerian Tertiary Education sector: challenges and prospects’’.

According to him, the scholarship system needs to be reviewed to serve the purpose for which it was introduced.

He said most scholarship boards in the states and federal levels had been characterised by corruption, hence the need for governments to deal with schools directly.

“The scholarship system must be reviewed and reorganised by disbursing scholarships through the institutions, rather than ineffective and corrupt boards.

“The federal and state governments should identify their beneficiaries and pay directly to their schools, and that should be done by merit,’’ he said.

According to him, paying directly to the institutions will reduce a lot of wastages and reduce corruption in the system.

Mr. Jega also advised the government to introduce a well-funded student’s scheme for indigent’s students that were qualified to go to tertiary institutions but could not afford it.

He noted that these were important innovative measures used by most countries to expand access to education.

Mr. Jega also called on the Federal Government to increase profit tax of companies allocated to Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), from two to five per cent.

He lauded TETFUND for serving the country well in terms of provision of infrastructures in institutions, as well as aiding the conduct of research. (NAN)

SOURCE: PREMIUM TIMES.