TETFund Denies Waiving Sanctions For Indebted Lecturers Who Absconded From Conference
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has debunked the news making rounds that it waived sanctions for erring lecturers who failed to attend conferences for which they were paid under its Conference Attendance Intervention Programme.
This was contained in a statement issued by the Acting Director, Public Affairs Unit of TETFund, Abdulmumin Oniyangi on behalf of the Executive Secretary.
The statement read in parts: “We wish to state categorically that at no point did the Executive Secretary of TETFund, Arc. Sonny Echono blankly waive sanctions for such categories of lecturers.
“The Executive Secretary of TETFund, Arc Sonny Echono was specific when he was addressing the Council of Heads of Polytechnics and Colleges of Technology in Nigeria (COHEADS) who paid him a courtesy visit in his office in Abuja.
“For purpose of clarity, the Executive Secretary was responding to an appeal by the COHEADS for assistance with TETFund Special Intervention on capacity building and training for Polytechnic lecturers through Conference Attendance to equip them and develop their capacity to train students to be skilled entrepreneurs on graduation.
“In his speech, Arc Echono drew the attention of lecturers to take advantage of the platform of the Association of Technical Universities and Polytechnics in Africa (ATUPA) Conference scheduled for year 2022.
“He said, ‘you did mention the ATUPA Conference. Many of the schools have not been performing very well in the recent past. Many institutions have not been able to access our Intervention for Conference Attendance. Those that are able to access, some have not attended. So, when we see a programme identified by you and is beneficial to all, we will prioritize it.
‘Indeed, for those staff in polytechnics, who have not been able to attend their conference that we have sanctioned, we will offer this (Association of Technical Universities and Polytechnics in Africa ATUPA, Conference) window of opportunity for them. For anybody who wants to attend this conference, who have an outstanding, collected money and have not used it for the purpose it was meant for, we will approve. So that they utilize it and go and attend the conference to take them off the hook of those that would be asked to refund the money they collected without attending the conference'”.
Oniyangi further reassured that TETFund would always be guided by its Mandate and Establishment Act, which entrenches accountability and transparency in the conduct of its day-to-day activities with Beneficiary Institutions.
“Consequently, those who have been found wanting with regard to Conference Attendance Programme of the Fund will be sanctioned accordingly”, he said.
