EKSU Speaks On How Students Were Defrauded By Scammers

By Ayodele Oni

Ekiti State University (EKSU) Ado Ekiti, has for the first time, admitted that fraudsters ripped off some of its students while trying to make payments through the University’s portal.

Report of how some staff of the University defrauded the students when they successfully hacked into the University’s payment portal went viral last year, but Management kept mute.

Workers’ Unions at the University had, early this year, given the Management an ultimatum to discipline some of the staff fingered and arrested by the police in connection with the scam.

However, a statement by the University on Monday blamed some of the affected students, accusing them of flouting its directive on the mode of payment of fees.

The University’s Head, Directorate of Information and Corporate Affairs, Mr Bode Olofinmuagun, who signed the statement, explained that the clarification became necessary in order not to mislead and misinform parents and the public on the issue.

He also said that it was in reaction to a recent publication on the fees fraud captioned, “EKSU students cry out as Varsity voids over N10 million school fees.”

Mr Olofinmuagun stated that the affected students disregarded the University’s policy on procedure for payment of fees and charges.

According to him, the institution had put in place the implementation of e-collection policy for the payment of all fees and charges and that the policy was part of control measures to check fraud and other irregularities.

“In line with the policy, the procedure for payment of fees and charges was uploaded on the University’s portal and website.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the procedure includes the use of username and personal password associated with each student.

“It was clearly stated that the release of username and password to a third party or external person is at the student’s risk.

“However, in spite of the above warning and after thorough investigation, it was discovered that the defrauded students disregarded the policy on procedure for payment and on their own volition, decided to pay their fees for the 2018/2019 academic session into the personal accounts of the fraudsters, rather than the University’s designated and profiled bank accounts.

“During investigation, some of the defrauded students made confessional statements, while some of them, after realising their mistakes, have made correct and genuine payments into the University’s designated accounts.

“It is equally important to let the general public know that the perpetrators of the scam were arrested by a law enforcement agency and later released on bail.

“The University Management wishes to assure that it would cooperate with the relevant law enforcement agencies to ensure that those defrauded get their monies refunded.’”