The Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, has restated its commitment to transparency and fairness in selecting beneficiaries for its Foreign Postgraduate Scholarship Programme meant for Niger Delta indigenes.
The NDDC Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, who stated this during an assessment visit to the venue of the Postgraduate Scholarship interviews in Port Harcourt, assured that the process was devoid of bias, prejudice and compromise.
Ogbuku, who was represented by the NDDC Director of Education, Health and Social Services, Dr Patience Ezugu, thanked the interview panel for doing a good job, noting that there were no complaints from candidates and that the exercise was carried out seamlessly.
He explained that the process of selecting the scholarship recipients was transparent, noting: “The students who benefited from the scholarship scheme in the previous years had distinctions in their various fields of study, and we have not heard of criminal or any negative reports about them.”
The NDDC Director of Education, Dr Awele Chukwudifu, said that successful candidates would be encouraged to return home and use what they had learnt to help improve the region. She expressed appreciation for the Commission’s passion for the capacity development of Niger Deltans.
She noted: “As soon as the computer-based exams are concluded, the scores pop up, which ensures every candidate sees their scores immediately, which shows transparency and integrity.”
The Chairman of the interview panel, a lecturer from the Niger Delta University, Amassoma, Bayelsa State, Prof. Beleudanyo Fente, lauded the NDDC for providing an educational platform to improve the lives of the region’s indigenes.
Fente said that he and his team ensured the workflow was efficient to conduct a free and fair interview and select the best candidates for the scholarship. He stated that only the best would get the scholarship, as there was no room for compromise.
He thanked the NDDC for supporting higher education in the region and urged it to do more, promising that the interview panel would ensure the process was transparent and that the most suitable and qualified candidates were selected.
The consultant for the scholarship programme, Chief Godson Ideozu, said the process was dependable, as there had been no issues since the programme’s commencement. He observed that 12,277 candidates applied for the scholarship, of whom 5,986 scaled through the CBT, and 2,492 were selected for the oral interview.
Ideozu further stated that those who succeed in the oral interview would be invited for a departure briefing in due course.
One of the candidates, Mrs Akindoyeni Oluwabukunmi, said the process was transparent and satisfactory, noting that the scholarship would enable her to enhance her knowledge to contribute to the development of the Niger Delta region. She thanked the NDDC for providing an avenue for the less privileged to further their academic pursuits.
