Taraba College of Nursing debunks allegations of NELFUND extortion By John Mkom, Jalingo The management of the College of Nursing and Midwifery, Jalingo, Taraba State, on Friday denied allegations of extorting ₦5,250 from students after the disbursement of the National Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). Recent social media reports had claimed that the college was deducting the amount from each student who benefited from the scheme before disbursement. The posts, which went viral, were attributed to some students of the institution. However, Provost of the college, Dorcas Dungule, who addressed the allegations on Friday, told The Nation that the claims were unfounded and misleading. She explained that the college had not been contacted by any media organisation for clarification before the information was circulated. Dungule revealed that some students had admitted to making the posts and had handed over their phones for investigation. “The college is currently investigating the matter,” she said. According to Dungule, the college requires students to procure academic and clinical materials, including: ₦4,000 for clinical logbook; ₦2,500 for Record of Instruction; ₦4,000 for entrepreneurial logbook; and ₦1,500 for administrative and bank charges, totaling N12,000. “These materials are supplied by the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria and are a standard requirement for nursing students nationwide,” the provost emphasised, adding that “these charges apply to all students who are beneficiaries or non-beneficiaries of NELFUND and are part of the clearance process for NELFUND payments.” “The attention of the college management has been drawn to a social media post, attributed to one Abdulmumin Iman -a publication circulating on social media platforms which attempts to discredit the reputation and integrity of the college administration regarding the disbursement of funds under the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). “The public is hereby informed that the allegation is misleading and does not reflect the true situation, as the report appears to have been made without proper verification or engagement with the college authorities. “At no time was the management of the college contacted by any media organisation for clarification on the matter before the information was circulated to the public. “It is also important to inform the public that certain academic and clinical materials are required for students’ training.”