According to a report, Ambrose Ezewani, an ex student of the University of Lagos and former President of the National Association of Delta State students, UNILAG chapter, who blew the lid on a systematic student bursary racketing allegedly spearheaded by the Commissioner for Higher Education in Delta state, Mr Hope Eghagha has been handed over to the Delta state Government
Police officers in Sabo Station yesterday afternoon handed him over after the Delta State officials visited to ask for his transfer to Asaba, Delta State where he will be most likely tortured and “tried” for revealing the fraud perpetrated by officials of the state.
Ezeanwani was President of the National Association of Delta State Students Union at the University of Lagos. During his tenure, he revealed that the bursary system was fraught with fraud, which he said was being perpetrated by men in the scholarship board in Delta State.
Ezeawani alleged that the irregularities surfaced since the current Commissioner for Higher Education in the State, Mr. Hope Eghagha came on board. Mr. Eghagha a former professor at the University of lagos was a former newspaper columnist and critic of the Delta state government before bagging a government appointment a few years ago.
Ezeawani claims that Eghagha’s office had created a system for students bursary application where non-existing students are awarded bursary by the state.
He said in his investigation, which the UNILAG students’ records office corroborated, the names published as “approved” for bursary awards every year where non-existent in the Institution’s official records.
Ezeawani further stated that his research discovered that the office of the Commissioner for Higher Education in Delta State led by Eghagha had generated about 23,000 fake students and bank accounts and sorts codes throughout institutions across the country to siphon bursary funds while publishing fake names of beneficiaries in the print media every year.
Although few genuine names of students are mixed in the published bursary approval list every year, it is observed that most of the genuine students are shut out of the scheme while non-existing names are paraded.
Ambrose had led series of protest marches calling for investigations into the scam, however, the Economic and financial crimes Commission EFCC) to whom he directed his protests did nothing to investigate the fraud.
Last Wednesday on his way to Federal college of education (Technical) Akoka some men in mufti pulled up in front of him and attempted forcing him into their car. Ezeawani said he resisted and headed for the police station in Sabo instead. The men followed him and asked the police to hand him over but the police refused. The men apparently sent by the Delta state government then asked that Ezeawani be detained for them to go and prepare documents from Asaba to facilitate his hand over.
He has now been handed over today to policemen from Asaba who are suspected to be doing the bidding of the Delta State officials.
Ambrose had before now done an underground investigation over bursary allocations to indigines of the state nationwide and discovered that the Commissioner's office had over the years produced about 23,000 fake students and bank accounts and sorts codes throughout institutions across the country to siphon bursary funds while publishing fake names of beneficiaries in the print media every year. In UNILAG, the student record office collaborated Ambrose's claim that most of the Delta state students published for bursary allocations were non-existent to the school.
Last Wednesday, April 23, while on his way to the Federal College of Technology Akoka, Ambrose was accosted by plain clothed men who demanded he entered their vehicle and follow them which he refused since he did not know who they were. He then decided to walk to the nearest police station within the area there which was the Sabo Police station with those men tailing him. On getting to the police station, he told the police men there what happened and the police men refused to let him go saying whoever wanted him arrested should come with a warrant of arrest and so they kept him in their custody with the men pleading that they do not allow him go as they would soon return with a warrant
Two days ago, they got the warrant and Ambrose has been taken to Delta state.
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