Beams spotlight on NELFUND to forestall student loan abuse
Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, yesterday, said fraudulent politicians were perfecting schemes and hiding their loot in cryptocurrencies to beat the investigative searchlight of anti-corruption agencies.
Olukoyede stated this during the African Union Anti-corruption Day with the theme: “Understanding Virtual Assets and Investment Scam”, which was held at Iyaganku, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
The EFCC chairman was represented by the Acting Zonal Director, Ibadan Zonal Directorate of the agency, Hauwa Garba Ringim.
Olukoyede said: “Stolen funds and unexplained wealth are being warehoused in wallets and payments for services are being done through this window. Investment schemes are also being facilitated through it. For us at the EFCC, virtual assets fraud and investment scams are not hard nuts to crack. Proactive and broad-based training and intelligence are bringing fraudulent schemes to the fore. We are ahead in every material sense and there is enormous proof of operational successes in this regard, especially the breakthrough in the investigation and prosecution of the infamous CBEX scam.
“Investment fraud, like virtual assets fraud, is spreading like wildfire across Africa. Fraudsters are exploiting the vulnerabilities of desperate investors to defraud them through various dishonest schemes. Every exploitation of investors in any guise is considered a fraudulent act. Ponzi schemes rank as one of the most pervasive of such acts.”
In his lecture on the same theme, Prof Oludayo Tade of the University of Ibadan said both the fraudsters and the defrauded were equally guilty.
He pointed out that people would become victims because they thought they should be the only ones to enjoy the benefits of the Ponzi schemes.
MEANWHILE, at another event, Olukoyede reiterated the resolve of the Commission to ensure that every kobo earmarked for the students’ loan scheme through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) gets to its intended beneficiaries.
He gave the assurance in Abuja on Wednesday at a strategic meeting involving the EFCC, vice-chancellors of federal and state universities and the National Universities Commission (NUC).
At the meeting, Olukoyede said: “It is going to be a crime against humanity if recovered loot is re-looted again. It’s a fight to finish and we are not going to allow that to happen. That is why I am passionate about this because it takes a lot from us to recover these funds. So, we must manage this money in the most accountable and transparent manner. If you were in our position, you wouldn’t be comfortable.”
He explained that a reasonable portion of the seed fund for NELFUND was sourced from proceeds of crime recovered by the EFCC.
He disclosed that the EFCC would begin to monitor how institutions manage their budgets and apply funds for development.
In his opening remarks, the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Prof Abdullahi Yusufu Ribadu, said the meeting was convened at the instance of President Bola Tinubu to strengthen accountability, integrity, and good governance in the country’s education sector.
In his contribution, the Managing Director of NELFUND, Mr Akintunde Sawyer, stressed the importance of getting the fund’s disbursement process right.
