The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has donated N50 billion in recovered crime proceeds to the National Economic Lift and Family Empowerment Fund (NELFUND), aiming to support economic development and empowerment initiatives.
The Nigerian Education Loan Fund has received a donation of N50bn from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission as support.
The anti-corruption agency made this known on Tuesday, August 13th, 2024 during a visit by the management team of Fund led by its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Mr. Akintunde Sawyerr to EFCC headquarters in Abuja.
According to Sawyerr, the President Bola Tinubu-led administration created the Fund with an aim to offer financial support for underprivileged students’ education.
According to a portion of the statement found on EFCC’s website, Sawyerr expressed his gratitude towards the commission for injecting N50 billion into NELFUND using proceeds recovered from criminal activities.
Sawyerr acknowledged that NELFUND received funds from illegal activities, and expressed appreciation for the contribution. Additionally, Sawyerr requested EFCC monitoring of their actions.
The most populous and neglected group of our population, the youths, are also known to be restive. President Tinubu acknowledged this as a significant problem and implemented a major solution to tackle it.
The initiative launched by President Tinubu was praised by the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, in his comments. He referred to it as a “policy issue against crimes.”
He additionally mentioned that inadequate educational assistance from parents played a role in the involvement of children in financial crimes.
According to him, the inability of parents to finance their children’s education is one of the significant motivators behind cybercrimes. He considers NELFUND a vital policy measure in preventing such criminal activities and commends President Tinubu for introducing it.
The NELFUND management team was counseled by the EFCC head to prioritize transparency in their operations, as this would aid in combating corruption.
He urged, “Ensure your hands are clean; I am emphasizing the need for you to maintain cleanliness. The task that has been delegated to you will aid EFCC in its battle against corruption. Please ensure transparency of systems and procedures.”
Olukoyede instructed the head of NELFUND to provide an account on how its funds were disbursed to the EFCC. He emphasized his dedication in preventing any further embezzlement of the donated sum amounting to N50bn.
“I will make sure that the money collected to support NELFUND is not again stolen,” he declared. “We demand your management submits reports of disbursements made to EFCC.”
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Ensure that you only sign documents that are comprehensible to you. Don’t succumb to any form of coercion. Notify your employees that there aren’t any funds available for distribution.
Olukoyede urged Nigerians to work towards the achievement of both the NELFUND initiative and Tinubu’s leadership.
The Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bill of 2024 was approved by Tinubu and signed into law on April 3, 2024.
In May, the first batch of 1.2 million students in federal tertiary institutions across the country began registering for the program.
NELFUND made an announcement on August 7, 2024, stating that it had achieved a noteworthy achievement. It received the largest volume of student loan applications in just one day since its portal was launched on May 25th earlier that year.
