A corps member serving in Zamfara State, Fidelis Chalokwo, has been
declared wanted by the Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola,
over N30m varsity school fees fraud involving 940 students.
Punch correspondent learnt that the 940 students of the institution risked
being restrained from sitting for the second semester examination.
The affected students were considered ineligible by the bursary
department of the university to sit for the examination because they had
reportedly not yet paid their school fees.
According to the Students Union Government of the institution on
Tuesday, preliminary investigations into the N30m school fees fraud
linked Chalokwo, a former student of the university, now performing his
NYSC programme in Zamfara, of executing 70 per cent of the fraud.
“More than 70 per cent of the students swindled of their school fees
said they paid to Fidelis Chalokwo, who is now performing his NYSC
programme in Zamfara,” said Abubakar Lawan, the SUG Vice-President.
He added that Chalokwo who was wanted to account for his crime, claimed
he had left the country. The SUG VP said the varsity believed the
suspect was still in the country and in Zamfara.
The Dean, Student Affairs, MAUTECH, Yola, Dr. Haruna Lawan, said over
N30m was involved, adding that most of the students, instead of using
their Automated Teller Machine cards to make the payments, gave cash to
the online vendors who turned out to be fraudsters.
He said the least of the school fees involved was N30,700, while other
victims of the scams paid as much as N37,800 in school fees which never
hit the school account.
However, Chalokwo, posting on his Facebook page, said the management of
MAUTECH was trying to cover its ineptitude by using the 940 students to
make up for its shortfall in revenues.
He dismissed any wrongdoing on his part.
He said, “The university should instead get the incompetent Flexisaf to
account for the 940 failed registration rather than its current manhunt
for me and my colleagues. But whatever you want to believe, please, note
that my colleagues and I successfully paid your fees and registered for
your courses for 2016 session.
“Let the FLEXISAF ICT explain the rest. It is a pity that the school
bursar or management or whosoever is encouraging the manhunt of students
cannot have a deep introspection and get the incompetent FLEXISAF to
account for whatever losses the school probably must have recorded. The
dubious list of 940 failed registration is the worst conspiracy theory
ever.”
