Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri
A former Senate Majority Leader, Senator Ali Ndume, has launched an educational fund for students in his constituency in higher institutions.
Launching the Ndume Educational Fund (NEF) in collaboration with Southern Borno Students Council (SBSC) at the weekend, Ndume, who was at a time the Minority Leader in the House of Representatives, said the fund would take care of 1,000 students at the initial stage.
He said N10 million has been paid into the account of SBSC from where it would be disbursed to the 1,000 students with each getting N10,000.
Ndume, who is presently representing Borno South Senatorial district at the upper chamber, said he has already set aside a sum of N10 million through his newly established foundation, Ndume Educational Fund, to support indigenes of Borno South Senatorial district schooling in tertiary institutions in Borno State.
He said: “Today is very significant to me, the students of Southern Borno Senatorial district and the educational development of the zone. I have set aside N10 million to support students in my constituency. We have selected 1,000 students from University of Maiduguri, Ramat Polytechnic, Kashim Ibrahim College of Education, among other tertiary institutions, where each student will get a support of N10,000.
“We have brought together the leaders of the students’ unions of these tertiary institutions and form Southern Borno Student Council, a body trusted to manage the fund. The payment is going to be done through e-payment. We have collected their account numbers and BVN number and this week In Sha Allah all of them will get their alerts.
“We have categorised the zone into three, Biu, Gwoza and Askira-Uba, constitute category A, where we selected above 1,000 students; category B consists of Hawul, Shani and Damboa will accommodate 75 to 100 students; while category C has Kwaya Kusar, Chibok and Bayo with above 50 students each. We are hoping to expand the number of the students with time.
“In addition to the scholarship, right now my wife is in Biu disbursing the sum of N10,000 each to 625 widows and indigent women. One hundred of them will get sewing machines, 500 will be getting a support of N10,000 each. The male are also not left out as 500 men will also be empowered with N10,000 each, as part of our empowerment programme to support the federal government ‘tradermoni’ programme.”
While flagging off the fund, Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum, said “in the last few years the state has been faced with security challenges of Boko Haram, hence the need for setting up this kind of fund to support government, most especially in its quest to revive the education sector. I therefore commend and appreciate Senator Ndume for coming up with this fund to support students of his constituency. I urge other individuals, philanthropists, non-governmental organisations and corporate organisations to emulate Senator Ndume.”
The governor, who was represented by the Secretary to Borno State Government, Alhaji Usman Jidda, urged the Southern Borno Student Council to manage the money judiciously and tasked the beneficiaries to make good use of the money.
Earlier in his address, the Vice Chancellor, University of Maiduguri, Prof. Aliyu Shugaba, said “cost of education and funding of educational institutions is increasingly becoming a challenge and difficult, any support such as Ndume Educational Fund is very important.”
He said University of Maiduguri is always ready to partner with any individual, politician and corporate organisations to bring assistance to indigent students, noting that the university would provide a befitting secretariat to the Southern Borno Students Council and that his doors are always opened for the council.
Speaking on behalf of the students, Chairman, Southern Borno Students Council, Comrade Abdulmajid Haruna, thanked the Senator for his gesture and promised to prudently and transparently manage the fund.
