The Academic Staff Union of Universities has stated that a total of 164 indigent students selected from its branches across the country benefited from the 2024 scholarship disbursements.

The Union stated this while reiterating that its position that the federal government students loan scheme otherwise know as NELFUND should be grant, has not changed.

The Convener of ASUU Grant, Research and Publications Committee, Professor Christopher Piwuna on Saturday said in press conference that of the 79 ASUU branches, two successful applicants were selected in every university through a rigorous screening process.

He said each recipient of the scholarship went home with a non-refundable cash-backing of N200,000.

The Convener, who was represented by the former Coordinator ASUU Bauchi-Zone, Lawan Abubakar, said the selection process took cognisance of gender balance.

He said physically challenged beneficiaries were selected to support them to access tertiary education.

Speaking in the conference, he said “Over the last two years, ASUU spent about N164, 800,000 on scholarships for indigent students in universities across the country.

“Our Union has been managing the Gani Fawehinmi scholarship for years, we decided to not only organise that of Chief Gani but institute our own.

“This creation was also shaped by the government’s unrelenting attacks on students and their parents through ‘school charges.’“

“When we argued that NELFUND scholarship should be a grant, we meant it because we are not asking any parent or beneficiary of our indigent support to repay at a later day,” Piwuna said.

To qualify for the scholarship, interested applicants need to prove their indigent economic status and an excellent Cumulative Grade Average Point to the Union.