This development comes after the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) said it was investigating alleged corruption in the disbursement of the funds.

In a statement by the fund’s Director of Strategic Communications, Oseyemi Oluwatuyi, NELFund said ICPC’s comment was taken out of context.

“These reports, which suggest misappropriation and mismanagement of funds, are entirely false, grossly irresponsible, and deeply damaging to the integrity of an institution established to deliver financial hope to millions of Nigerians,” Oluwatuyi said.

“All institutional fees are paid directly to verified institutions, while upkeep allowances go into the verified bank accounts of eligible students,” she said.

“The reports circulating in the public space are based on outdated figures and previous interventions that predate our operations.”

Meanwhile, the ICPC has clarified its earlier statement on the student loan. The institution’s spokesman, Demola Bakare, said the agency’s move to investigate the disbursement of the funds was due to claims that 51 schools were involved in illegal deductions and exploitation related to the NELFund scheme.

“The ICPC confirmed that a clear case of discrepancies has been established in the administration of the student loan scheme and announced that its investigation will now extend to beneficiary institutions and individual student recipients,” the agency’s statement partly read.

But in an update, Bakare clarified that: “Unintentionally, the word ‘NOT’ was missing in the second to the last paragraph of our earlier press release in respect of an ongoing investigation regarding the Student Loan Scheme. The missing word created an erroneous impression that the alleged discrepancies or diversion had been established.

“We admit that this is not the case, indeed, we accept that the same part of the sentence also contradicted the whole paragraph. The paragraph ought to read: ‘The ICPC confirmed that a clear case of discrepancies has NOT been established in the administration of the student loan scheme and announced that its investigation will now extend to beneficiary institutions and individual student recipients.’

“For avoidance of doubt, the Commission has only established the total amount of funds received and disbursed so far by NELFUND. The impression of diversion and the issue of discrepancies do not exist at this stage; the investigation would have to move into the receiving institutions and persons before any reasonable deductions could be made.”

Earlier, the court, led by Justice James Omotosho, granted the request of the Federal Government for witnesses to testify behind screens.

At the resumed hearing on Tuesday, the Defence Counsel, led by Kanu Agabi, told the court that he had 22 members on his team. The judge, however, said he wouldn’t approve more than the 13 he had listed.

Four senior advocates have joined the defence team, namely: Audu Nunghe, Joseph Akubo, Emeka Etiaba and Onyechi Ikpeazu.

The case, featuring terrorism and treasonable felony charges, was originally instituted in 2015 following Kanu’s arrest in Lagos.

Major setbacks have held the case down for almost a decade, making it impossible for the prosecution to call witnesses and present exhibits until Tuesday.

The case started with four people initially charged as Kanu’s co-defendants. However, in February 2018, the then-trial judge Binta Nyako severed the trial, separating Kanu—who had fled Nigeria—from the other defendants. The trial severance allowed the prosecution to continue proceedings against the four remaining co-defendants.

The Nigerian government would re-arrest Kanu in Kenya in June 2021.