A firm, Tondek Agency Limited has accused Delta State University, Abraka of collecting N4,000, from students for a school magazine without giving them the university magazine.
The Vice-Chancellor, Delta State University, Abraka, Prof Andy Egwunyenga had through a press statement issued by the university’s Public Relations Officer, Eddy Agbure, denied the collection of N4,000 from students for the production of school magazine as insinuated by an online publication.
Egwunyenga maintained that there was never a time his administration that the institution exploited students or demanded any payment of N4,000 for the production of the school magazine, as insinuated by the said online publication.
However, the agency which was in charge of the production of the school magazine since 2017 urged Prof Egwunyenga to stop denying it, noting that it had available evidence of payments made by students to prove their claims.
Speaking with newsmen on Monday in Asaba, the Director of Contacts, Tondek Agency, Anthony Arugba alleged that the school had been collecting the magazine fee since 2017, but declined to remit to the agency for the past two academic sessions.
He said, “We were surprised to hear the VC of the institution deny that the school did not collect N4,000 for the school magazine.
“They have been collecting the money since we introduced the magazine in 2017, as I speak to you now, the school is collecting N4,000 without remitting to the agency that printed the magazine for two years, and these students were not given the magazine. This is extortion and a fraudulent act.
“The N4,000 school magazine fee is one of the pre-requisites for collecting the school certificate or for clearance of admission, so students are still paying the money but we’re not given the magazine
“We have a receipt dated December 2, 2021, but they have devised another means of paying the N4,000 through bank draft to cover up their tracks”
The Vice-Chancellor, Delta State University, Abraka, Prof Andy Egwunyenga while speaking to our correspondent on the development, described DELSU @25 publication as fraudulent.
He said, “When I came in as VC, I discovered fraud in the publication of the magazine, immediately I directed Students to stop paying for the DELSU @ 25 magazine, especially at a time when DELSU is about 30 years.
“I don’t want to talk much because I have already directed my lawyers to put their documents together, we are going to court for the blackmail”