RSG To Pay Students Bursary, April

The Rivers State Government has assured students that latest by first week of April, they will start receiving their bursary arrears.
Secretary to the State Government, Mr. George Feyii, who stood in for Governor Chibuike Amaechi, gave the assurance when students under the umbrella of National Union of Rivers State Students (NURSS) protested to Government House, Port Harcourt, over the non-payment of their bursaries yesterday.
Feyii said the state government considers students as, “a very important segment” of the state and will always put their welfare in top spot.
The SSG informed the students that before the protest, government had already commenced the process of paying the bursary following a meeting it held with the Rivers State Scholarship Board.
Against this backdrop, he revealed that a fresh round of verification exercise will commence on Monday, to ascertain the number of students, stating that two student leaders will be selected to liaise with the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education to oversee the process.
By the time the verification exercise is concluded by the end of March, according to Feyii, “within first week of April, we would have been able to sort out areas we have cleared”.
Feyii, while commending the students for their peaceful conduct, urged them not to be used by those who wish to run down the government.
Earlier, President of NURSS, Comrade Max Lucky Chukwuladi, disclosed that the protest was to address the plight of students of Rivers State origin who have not received bursary in the past three years.
He warned that failure to fulfill government’s promise will attract the wrath of the students as, “we will start occupying key government offices and parastatals to register our grievance”.
Chukwuladi, who called for the appointment of a new special adviser on student matters, while denying that the protest was politically motivated, as he pledged support to the state government.