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Students Accuse Askia, Ejele, Nani Of Alleged Diversion Of DESOPADEC’s Bursary Funds For PDP Primaries

Published

3 years ago

June 15, 2022

BIGPEN

Hundreds of students of Delta State origin, on Wednesday, laid siege to the headquarters of the Delta State Oil Producing Area Development Commission (DESOPADEC), accusing the former chairman of the commission, Michael Diden a.k.a Ejele and the Managing Director of the commission, Askia Ogieh of allegedly diverting their bursary funds into their elections.

www.bigpenngr.com reports that the students, who besieged the head office of the commission located along the Warri-Sapele road, claimed that they were being owed bursaries whereas the people saddle with responsibility to release their pay had enough money to fund their election and pay delegates.

They alleged that their funds were diverted by the duo who resigned their appointment to seek elective positions.

But Chief Information Officer at DESOPADEC, Mr. Boniface Nzesi, dismissed the claim that their funds were frittered away, saying the students are not being owe backlog as claimed. He said that only this year payment have not been processed.

Chanting war songs in protest of the non-payment of their annual bursaries, the students who were drawn from the mandate areas of the oil commission, crippled official activities at the interventionist agency located along the Warri-Sapele road for the better part of the day until they dispersed.

The protesting students who bore placards with various inscriptions, accused the management of the agency of insensitivity to their plights, alleging that some authorities in the commission might have used their money for politics.

According to one of the student leaders, the commission has continued to pay deaf ears to their demands, hence the mass action.

An attempt by a staff of the commission who gave his name as Harriman Aghogho to address the protesting students was rebuffed as the students overwhelmed him.

He, however, said that the commission just initiated the process of the payment of the student bursary, appealing to the students to exercise some restraint.

Aghogho said that machinery is in place to open the portal before the next academic session for the payment to be made.

“It is a process, I was the one who initiated the payment process. I can assure you that the payment will be made”, he told the protesters.

When contacted, Chief Information Officer at DESOPADEC, Mr. Boniface Nzesi, who said he was in Asaba, the state capital, noted that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa had just reappointed the Executive Director of Finance and Administration, John Nani who is expected to facilitate the payment.

He said that with the reappointment of Nani, the bursary payment will be quickly processed and money released to the student.

Nani, alongside the chairman of the board, Michael Diden a.k.a Ejele and the Managing Director of the commission, Askia Ogieh had resigned their appointment to seek elective positions.

While Ejele won the Delta South senate ticket for PDP, Nani and Askia were defeated in their quest to pick the PDP ticket for Delta Central Senatorial District and Isoko Federal Constituency ticket respectively.