List will be out soon – Ayade.
Story by crossriverwatch admin.
Tertiary institutions students from the northern senatorial district of Cross River
State have expressed worries over the Senator Ben Ayade Scholarship and Bursary
Scheme (SBASBS). Some of the applicants who spoke to crossriverwatch were bitter
that since last year when they filled and submitted the application forms, nothing
has been heard from the scholarship committee contrary to what was promised.
Members of the scholarship committee include:
1) Chief Patrick C. Okem (Chairman)
2) Chief Linus Okom, KSGG,OON(Member)
3) Barr. Mike Ukpan Aniah(Member)
4) Chief Peter Ojie(Member)
5) Hon Legor Idagbo(Member)
6) Mr P.J Ekunke(Member)
7) Mr Emanuel Odo(Member)
8) Chief Eugene Akeh(Member)
9) Mrs Martina Odom(Member)
10) Mr Philip Akpodor(Member)
11) Hon Sunday Ikwen Achunekang (Member)
Apart from complaints about difficulty in accessing the online application form,
some of the applicants also complained that some of the vital links on the
scholarship online portal were not active. Some respondents also pointed out that
the requirement that your ward councillor must sign your form clearly excludes non
PDP members and non-partisan applicants.
In a comment by Peter Ogar Ikibunim, an applicant for the scholarship, he said “from
the qualifications tag of the Victor Ndoma-Egba’s scholarship, one can sense dead
fish in the Ben Ayade’s drowning scholarship scheme. We hear how rich the northern
senator is and how “philanthropic” he can be but let’s face reality. Imagine the
entire northern cross river state students with access to internet and counsellors
and no benchmark to qualify for the scholarship, now my question…… Should the
Senator Ben Ayade scholarship comes back to life, will new forms be put on the net
or will he offer scholarship to the entire northern students? If no what parameters
will be used in the selection”.
In his reaction, Lambert Agama said “I made a decision two days ago to save my
energy for the D-day, all should join me. Lets leave Ben Ayade alone for now and
watch him from behind the scene. I have activated eagle eyes on him, till 2015”.
Mr. Peter Ogar Oko turned religious in his reaction, “If Peter buries, will there be
no resurrection for 2015 and ascension prayers as well as a second coming? I know
that there shall be a second coming but at that time the dead in poverty shall rise,
those who failed out of school due to fees should have graduated. Many scholarship
scheme shall emerge and many people promising free education. When you see these
signs, please know that the hour is at hand and second tenure will be the message.
Many deceivers shall come and even claim to do better but yet none may be true. Let
the scheme go as it is written but woe to them who made it not to succeed, for it
would have been better if they did not get involved at all”.
Some respondents exonerated the Senator from any blame saying the members of the
SBASBS Committee should be blamed for the delay.
According to one of them who spoke under anonymity, “Our people play politics with
everything, the problem with the scholarship scheme is that the committee is made up
of big names that will be too busy to pursue its ideals. Mr. Senator should remember
to include the common man when next he names a committee because without us, he wont
be anywhere near the senate”.
Another respondent Mr. Oshen Ebuara said, “None of the persons mentioned in the
committee does not have the capacity to offer scholarship to students who are in
dare need of study support around their neighborhood, but they do not have the minds
to do it on their own, they can never support someone else to succeed by doing it,
so as not to bring shame and disgrace to themselves since they don’t have the Godly
conscience for such noble and holy gesture. The committee having being appointed
with the approval of Senator Liyel Imoke who is of course not an education friendly
Governor will do everything humanly possible to frustrate the effort of Senator
Prof. Ben Ayade in his quest to ameliorate the suffering condition of the Northern
students. Note that every other senator in CRS has already disbursed their
scholarship/study grants to their benefiting students, only Senator Ben Ayade’s own
is being delayed”.
But for Mr. Eric Akpo who the members of the committee are “people we respect and
trust not to betray their reputations, people who would actually also uphold the
values of the scheme so that the offer goes to those who deserve it. I agree with
you though that they are busy people, but an ancient adage goes that,” if you want
something done, you give it to a busy person else the idle man would procrastinate
and leave the job undone”.
Mr. Eric Akpo argued further that: “Hardly have I seen my master fail to uphold a
declared promise! Hardly have I seen our people without cash burdened scholars,
hardly has my boss outlived his present tenure, with so much on his wish list still
pending and in the pipe-line, hardly is he looking at 2015 at the moment, call me at
the wake of the final lap of his four year tenure and I shall witness to you that
that which he promised he has fulfilled. Hold me sir, to my word!”.
In his reaction, Senator Ben Ayade told crossriverwatch that, “the selection
process has been beset with some difficulties hence the delay”; he said “the first
batch of forms where said to have been hijacked by political office holders at LGA
level hence the introduction of online forms. The online forms were criticized for
reasons that not all students had access to internet which necessitated the
re-introduction of manual forms alongside the online forms. The applications
received were so much compared to the proposed number of awardees and thus a tasking
selection process. However, the board has so far overcome the challenges and the
selection process is far gone and hopefully and God willing, the beneficiaries would
be reached in no distant time. A list of prospective awardees would soon be
dispatched to the communities to confirm thier eligibility, after which the nominees
would be announced and funds disbursed. Once more bear with us, thank you”
The Senator Ben Ayade Scholarship and Bursary Scheme (SBASBS) was set up by Senator
Ben Ayade, Senator representing Cross River North in the Senate of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. The scheme was intended to promote scholarship and alleviate
the plight of indigent students of the senatorial district in pursuit of educational
advancement in tertiary institutions in Nigeria.
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