The President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Akinteye Babatunde Afeez, has challenged ADC chieftain Dino Melaye to account for his record of supporting students after the former senator criticised the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).

Afeez made the remarks in a video circulating on social media on Tuesday while reacting to Melaye’s comments about the Federal Government’s student loan programme.

The NANS president questioned whether Melaye had personally provided scholarships or bursaries to students in his constituency.

RELATED NEWS: ‘NELFUND Is A Haven Of Corruption’ — Dino Melaye Blasts Tinubu Govt

“Dino Melaye should come out and tell us if he has even given ₦5,000 as scholarship to students in his area, as bursary to students in his constituency,” Afeez said.

He questioned why Melaye should be the person shaping public opinion on education policy, particularly given his previous tenure in the Senate.

“Dino Melaye was a member of the 8th Senate, and I think he was one of the strongest members of the 8th Senate who was closer to the Senate President. What was his policy on education? What did he do to the students in his constituency?” he asked.

Afeez also criticised Melaye’s understanding of the NELFUND programme, saying the former lawmaker appeared to have confused the monthly upkeep payment with the entire support provided under the scheme.

“If Dino Melaye had done some research at all, he wouldn’t have embarrassed himself like that on national television stating that just ₦20,000 was given to students per year,” the NANS president said.

He explained that NELFUND provides educational loans as well as monthly upkeep support to beneficiaries.

“NELFUND has loan, and NELFUND has upkeep. Students are getting their educational loan and they are also getting the upkeep monthly,” Afeez said.

“And the upkeep is not just ₦20,000 a year, it’s ₦20,000 monthly,” he added.

Afeez further questioned whether Melaye had examined NELFUND’s publicly available information before making his claims.

“Even if Dino Melaye should go to ordinary NELFUND page, he will see schools acknowledging that they have received money from NELFUND,” he said.

The NANS president also took a strong position on Melaye’s criticism, describing the ADC chieftain as a comedian and questioning whether people still take his comments seriously.

“Do people still take Dino Melaye serious? Dino Melaye is a comedian. He is a jester,” Afeez said.

He argued that anyone commenting on education policy should be sufficiently informed about the subject.

“It is not about campaign and it’s not about supporting, but one fact is that if you want to talk about the education policy of the present administration, you have to have something upstairs,” he said.

Afeez also alleged that Melaye had previously asked students to endorse former presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar during the last election and subsequently failed to fulfil promises made to them.

“Dino Melaye, last election, came to Southwest to deceive students to endorse Atiku. After those students endorsed Atiku, he ran away with their money,” Afeez alleged.

He further claimed that Melaye had promised the students a vehicle.

Afeez concluded by dismissing Melaye’s criticism and saying NANS would continue to defend students’ interests.

The exchange followed Melaye’s earlier criticism of NELFUND, in which he described the programme as a “haven of corruption” and questioned the Federal Government’s claim that it was paying students’ school fees.

Melaye had specifically questioned the ₦20,000 payment, asking: “Which government school today takes ₦20,000 annual school fees?”

He also challenged NELFUND to publish the names of students who had benefited from the programme.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared that he is healthy, sound and ready to resume work after returning to Nigeria from his four-week working vacation in Europe.

Tinubu made the remarks on Tuesday shortly after arriving in Lagos from Paris, France, where he spent the final part of his vacation.

SEE MORE: Tinubu Departs Paris for Lagos, Set for Abiola Tribute

Speaking briefly after his arrival, the President said he enjoyed the break before assuring Nigerians of his readiness to return to official duties.

“I enjoyed myself,” Tinubu said.

On his readiness to resume work, he added: “Ready to kick, ready to work. There’s nothing wrong.”

The President also addressed rumours surrounding his wellbeing, attributing such speculation to the political environment.

“Well, rumour will always be emanating from politics, but the fact remains I’m here—healthy, sound, and ready to go,” he said.

Tinubu arrived at the Presidential Wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos at about 6:22 p.m. on Tuesday, marking the end of his European working vacation.

His return comes ahead of Nigeria’s 66th Independence Anniversary on October 1, with the President expected to participate in activities marking the occasion in Lagos.

The Presidency had earlier said Tinubu would remain in Lagos for several days for Independence Day engagements and strategic meetings before returning to Abuja.

Tinubu departed Nigeria on August 30 and spent time in London and Paris during the trip, while continuing official engagements.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Samuel Ogbuku, has highlighted the completion of the 1.2-kilometre Kaa-Ataba Bridge in Rivers State as evidence of the Commission’s growing capacity to deliver major infrastructure projects across the Niger Delta.

Ogbuku spoke at the 2026 NDDC Partners for Sustainable Development Conference in Port Harcourt, where he attributed the Commission’s progress to the support and cooperation of its development partners and other stakeholders.

SEE MORE: Otti Commends NDDC, Charges Team Abia To Dominate NDSF

The Kaa-Ataba Bridge links Khana and Andoni Local Government Areas of Rivers State and is expected to improve connectivity between the communities when opened to vehicular traffic.

According to Ogbuku, the project is among developments that many previously considered beyond the capacity of the NDDC.

“These are things that, in the past, people never believed the NDDC could do. Today, we are doing them seamlessly because of the support we are getting,” he said.

The NDDC boss said the progress recorded by the Commission demonstrated the impact of collaboration between the agency and its development partners.

He thanked stakeholders, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the National Assembly and the Minister of Regional Development for their support and encouragement towards the delivery of projects across the Niger Delta.

Ogbuku said the achievements also underscored the importance of collective responsibility, in line with the theme of the 2026 conference, “Synergy for Transformation.”