Senate Expands Safe Schools Probe to TETFund, NELFUND, Extends InvestigationThe Senate has expanded the scope of its ongoing investigation into the Safe Schools Initiative to include the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, and the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA).
The decision, reached on Tuesday, also extends the lifespan of the Senate ad hoc committee handling the probe by three weeks. The move followed a motion by the committee chairman, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu (APC, Abia North), who said preliminary findings revealed strong links between the Safe Schools Initiative and agencies responsible for education funding, student welfare, humanitarian support and social intervention programmes.
Kalu explained that restricting the investigation to the Safe Schools Initiative alone would prevent a full assessment of issues affecting school safety, educational funding and support for vulnerable students.
Under its expanded mandate, the committee will examine funding, implementation, accountability mechanisms and operational challenges across the affected agencies. It will also review school feeding and emergency relief programmes, audit TETFund-funded infrastructure and security projects, assess NELFUND’s loan disbursement process and operational efficiency, and evaluate UBEC’s interventions in basic education.
Kalu said the extension was necessary to allow the committee complete its work and submit a comprehensive report aimed at strengthening accountability, improving transparency and enhancing the safety and welfare of students across Nigeria.