Our Accusers are the Culprits-Amromanoh ***Says the board has saved over N307million for the govt since adopting e-registration of bursary. ASABA-THE Executive Secretary of the Delta State Bursary and Scholarship Board Mr Peter Amromanoh has said that those accusing the board of fraud in the payment of bursary to students are the real culprits. Mr Amromanoh stated this is an interview with newsmen in Asaba. The Executive Secretary who has been on the helms of the board for over 4 years went down memory lane on how the board operates. Activities of the Board The board deals with Bursary and Scholarship with over 194 Institutions participating in the scheme. Eligibility for the Students Special Assistance Scheme (Bursary) Students are expected to have a GPA of not less than 2.2 to qualify. Polytechnic Students must be in HND to qualify, students in Colleges of Education must be in year two while University Students are expected to be in their 200 Level to qualify. Mode of Application Before the advent of the online application platform, the board calls for names from the institutions where the schools sends names and the board compiles and send back to the schools for verification before it is brought back to the board and finally the board sends the value to the schools for payment. However, due to the several frauds carried out in the manual system, the board introduced the online system where students are expected to log in with a scratch card of N300 and process the details and submit online. The system screens the applicants and rejects fraudulent applications. The system has verification signatures with 5% degree of error. The list is sent back to the schools for verification before it is sent to Exco for approval. Once Exco approves, the students are paid in their various account numbers stated in their applications. There are also challenges in this system because some students provide incorrect account numbers and hence the board will have to call them to send in their correct account numbers before they are finally paid. Gains of the E-Payment System The benefits of the e-payment system can be seen from the savings of N80m in the first year, N172m in the second year and N55m in the third year to the govt. All these funds were duly returned to government coffers. Challenges involved in Bursary Payments There are several challenges ranging from the Professional students, and those who call themselves as stakeholders. For instance in the first year, over 50,000 registered while 23,000 were rejected for registering several times. The board is saying its zero tolerance to fraud and this can be seen from the multiple applications from some students. Because they have spent money in buying several scratch cards and also money in opening several accounts, they have decided to fight back having lost everything. Scholarship Schemes Delta State is blessed to have a students friendly Governor in Dr Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan who has graciously approved the following scholarship schemes for Deltans. First Class Oversea Scholarship This scholarship was instituted to encourage Deltans to pursue a career in academics. Any Deltan with a first class degree in any field is qualified to apply and will be given N5m to study for M.Sc in any university in the world and once the student presents a letter of Admission for Ph.D the student will be given N5m every year for three years to complete the Programme. The total package for the first class graduates scholarship is N20m. Oversea Scholarship The State Government also approved an oversea scholarship for those who didnt make first class. However, they must undergo a qualifying examination and successful applicants will be paid N3m for M.Sc and N3m annually for Ph.D till graduation which amounts to N9m. Aviation Scholarship With the building of an International Airport in Asaba and also with the expansion of the Osubi Airport in Warri, the Delta State Government approved the Aviation Scholarship in her bid to provide the much needed human capital development for the aviation industry and also to encourage Deltans to take advantage of the growing aviation industry in the state. Deltans studying in Aviation schools are given N5m every year until they graduate. Scholarship for physically challenged Because the Delta State Government gives priority to the physically challenged, the State Government graciously approved the payment of N20,000 per year for all physically challenged pupils in the primary school, while those in the secondary school gets N30,000 and university N50,000 annually. Scholarship to children of deceased Civil Servants Again the Delta State Government believes that the children of deceased civil servants in the state should not suffer because they lost their father or mother. They are also sponsored by the Government up to University level. Scholarship to Law School Students The Delta State Government also recognized that students at the law school spend a lot of money during the program. To this end, the State Government subsidizes their expenditure with N100,000 per students of law school who are of Delta State origin. Scholarship for Undergraduates The Delta State Government in her bid to encourage excellence in our Universities have also approved an undergraduate scholarship for students who maintain a CGPA of 3.5 and above. To this end, the sum of N100,000 is paid to such deserving students annually till they graduate with a proviso that they must maintain a CGPA of 3.5 and above. Scholarship for Local Post-Graduate Students The State Government also encourages local Post-Graduate students with the sum of N200,000 for M.Sc and N300,000 per annum for Ph.D. All applications are advertised in national dailies and on their website at dtsgscholarship.org
Posted on: Sun, 18 May 2014 16:28:42 +0000
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