The Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) said it had not at any time announced the cancellation of the ongoing scholarship scheme to eligible beneficiaries.
The clarification is contained in a press release Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) signed by Special Assistant on Media, PAP, Freston Akpor.
The release is the response to trending comments on various social media platforms with a rumored outright cancellation of the scholarship scheme.
The statement reads in part: “According to an official statement issued by the PAP on 06/01/2023 which clearly emphasized that the Presidential Amnesty Programme scholarship scheme has temporarily been placed on hold due to financial constraints occasioned by the huge debt profile associated with the Formal Education component of the programme.
“Evidently, the recent award of scholarships (not by the present management) were done without recourse to proper budgetary considerations and efficient financial planning thus having an adverse effect on PAP’s current budgetary needs.
“It will therefore defy any logical reasoning on the part of the office to commence award of fresh scholarships without adequately restructuring of it’s current debts and effectively planing with available resources vis-a-vis intended new programs.
“The PAP under its current leadership recognizes and acknowledges the importance of education and capacity building to the growth and development of the Niger Delta and will therefore not relent in doing everything possible to ensure that formal education opportunities are made available to beneficiaries of the Programme”.