‘No one can reverse it’ — Tinubu says any money recovered by EFCC will go into NELFUND

President Bola Tinubu says the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will channel all recovered funds into the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).

The president spoke on Friday at the launch of Arise Palm Resort in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom state capital.

Tinubu said the decision was informed by the need to ease the burden of tuition fees on parents and ensure equal access to education for all Nigerians.

“I feel your pain and share in the difficulty, and that’s why I decided to take away the responsibility of tuition fees from parents and equal opportunities for everyone who wants to read, taking education as the greatest weapon against poverty,” he said.

“And creating opportunities for those who are still coming behind. From today on, as we are fighting corruption, any money recovered by EFCC will be dumped into that education programme. It will be. No one can reverse it.”

On August 19, the president directed the EFCC to channel all recovered funds into NELFUND.

Tunji Alausa, minister of education, announced the development while answering questions from State House correspondents shortly after the weekly federal executive council (FEC) meeting that day.

He said the FEC also approved the allocation of all unclaimed dividends in the Capital Market Trust Fund and funds in the Dormant Account Trust Fund to the student loan scheme to expand its reach and improve its efficiency.

Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on August 31 to highlight the commission’s achievements under his leadership, Ola Olukoyede, EFCC chairman, said the federal government had allocated N100 billion from funds recovered by the anti-graft agency to the student loan scheme since 2024.

He noted that when “recovered criminal value” helps finance education and household credit, enforcement moves beyond punishment to restoration and productive national use.