Otuaro Cautions PAP Foreign Scholarship Beneficiaries Against Abuse of Sponsorship

Sunday Ehigiator 

The Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Dr. Dennis Otuaro, has cautioned postgraduate foreign scholarship beneficiaries of the programme against abusing the sponsorship opportunity, urging them to return home after their studies to contribute to the development of the Niger Delta and Nigeria.

Otuaro gave the charge on Thursday during the orientation programme for the third batch of PAP foreign scholarship beneficiaries at the programme’s headquarters in Abuja. The latest batch, comprising over 140 students, has been deployed for postgraduate studies in universities across the United Kingdom.

As with the previous batches in January and September 11, the students were also presented with brand-new laptops to aid their research and academic work.

The PAP boss expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu and the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for supporting the initiative, which he described as a deliberate effort to close the human capital development gap in the Niger Delta.

“I don’t want any of you to abuse this postgraduate scholarship opportunity. Previous abuses have already made our chances slim in some European countries, but the U.K. Government has been considerate. Go, complete your studies, and come back to add value to our region and the country. This is not an opportunity to ‘japa’,” Otuaro warned.

He stressed that the region urgently needs qualified manpower in critical fields, adding that the deployment was based on the Niger Delta’s skill-demand needs. He advised the beneficiaries to obey the laws of their host country, follow their universities’ regulations, and study hard to justify the investment in them.

Otuaro further reminded them that the scholarship was a privilege not open to all, noting that while some had missed such opportunities in the past, today’s beneficiaries must make the most of it.

“The scholarship is an opportunity for you to go and study, finish, and return home. If you want to pursue other opportunities after your programme, reapply properly. Don’t misuse this window in ways that could cause problems,” he said.

The PAP administrator also thanked the U.K. Government for accommodating the students across three deployment batches this year; January, September 11, and September 18; while urging the beneficiaries to make their families, communities, the Niger Delta, the federal government, and President Tinubu proud.