AMF implored the PTDF to come to South East to conduct its interviews as it did for other regions
By Emma Ogbuehi
A civil society group, the Abia Media Forum (AMF), has faulted the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) over its exclusion of the South East geo-political zone from a recent scholarship interview for students to study abroad.
The group expressed its dissatisfaction in a release signed by its Chairman Ben Okezie and Secretary, Kelechi Ogbamgba, described the exclusion as an injustice and insult to the people of the zone. The Forum implored the PTDF to come to the region to do its interviews as it did for other regions.
Recent reports alleged that the PTDF conducted scholarship interviews across the country in which 8000 candidates were selected for overseas training. In it, all the other five regions were visited, except the south east. Officials of the Fund were quoted to have claimed that they did not visit the South East for the interviews because of the climate of insecurity in the region.
PTDF instead offered persons from the zone the opportunity to attend those interviews outside their geopolitical area.
PTDF said it received 26 000 applications and shortlisted over 8000. The scheme is an annual programme that awards scholarships to Nigerians for MSc and PhD studies in partner universities in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, China, and Malaysia.
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Not convinced by the explanation, Abia Media Forum argued that the PTDF can and should rise to the constitutional and professional obligation to treat all sections of the country fairly and equitably.
“The Abia Media Forum invites PTDF management to apply Section 2 of the Nigerian Constitution which directs all agencies of government to enforce the fundamental objectives and directive principles of state policy. In this case, PTDF must ensure via sub-section 10 that “There should not be any discrimination on the grounds of place of origin, sex (gender), religion, status, ethnic or linguistic ties.”
“PTDF is duty-bound to conduct the Overseas Scholarship Scheme interviews in a location in the South-East as it has done for other regions.
The Abia Media Forum considers the PTDF claim that the North-West and the North-East are more secure than the South-East both tendentious and ridiculous as it flies in the face of Nigeria’s current history. Pray, was it not in Kaduna that terrorists bombed a train and took over several communities? Is Kaduna not the location that citizens can hardly reach again through the connecting road to other towns such as Abuja? Go to the South-East, PTDF”, the group stressed.