Scholarships: Amnesty office eases verification of students

The Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) says students under its scholarship programme can swear to an affidavit to affirm their identities.

PAP coordinator, Milland Dikio, in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja, said that the measure is aimed at ending the exercise that had become generally contentious and controversial.

The statement was signed by Florence Dibiaezue-Eke, Director, Information, in the PAP office.

Mr Dikio said that students verification should be “a simple administrative procedure”.

He directed relevant departments, especially the Reintegration Department, to adopt measures to immediately address recurring issues on students verification.

“The supervising departments should direct the affected students to swear to an affidavit to affirm their identities and courses of study in their respective institutions.

“The heads of departments or deans of faculties are required to endorse the affidavits with their signatures and official stamps.

“Copies of the completed documents should be forwarded by email to the Reintegration Department and his office for prompt action,” he said.

He explained that the office had to take the measures to save genuine students from needless suffering.

The coordinator added that a verification team from the office would still be dispatched to conduct a physical verification exercise.

Mr Dikio said that the PAP officials had not been able to do underground verification of the students due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the current unrest in the country.

He warned that the office would take punitive action against any student or institution found to have supplied false information, and advised students yet to be verified to do so without delay. (NAN)