46 Abandoned Foreign Scholarship Beneficiaries Cry Out for Justice, Allege Silence from Bomai Foundation
46 Abandoned Foreign Scholarship Beneficiaries Cry Out for Justice, Allege Silence from Bomai Foundation
By Matthew Eloyi
Forty-six shortlisted beneficiaries of the Senator Ibrahim Mohammed Bomai Foundation Foreign Scholarship Programme have raised the alarm over what they describe as abandonment, silence and unfulfilled promises by the foundation, calling on relevant authorities and stakeholders to intervene.
In a press statement issued on Sunday, the affected beneficiaries said they were speaking out “with deep pain, financial distress, and emotional exhaustion” after weeks of unanswered appeals to the foundation’s leadership.
The group disclosed that formal letters dated September 13 and October 2, 2025, addressed to the Chairman of the Foundation, yielded no response or acknowledgment. According to them, the silence has left unresolved critical issues surrounding their alleged disqualification, claims of age limitations, the abandonment of a second batch of beneficiaries and the public assurances earlier made by officials of the programme.
“We were publicly shortlisted and celebrated as beneficiaries of the Foundation’s Foreign Scholarship Programme,” the statement said. “At no point during or after the process were we informed about any age restrictions or disqualifying criteria.”
The beneficiaries stated that they attended all screenings, submitted required documents and complied with every directive issued by the organisers, spending personal funds in the process based on repeated assurances that their selection was valid.
They recalled that the sponsor of the programme, Senator Ibrahim Mohammed Bomai, had publicly stated on media platforms that “the remaining beneficiaries will soon join the first batch,” a declaration made during the departure of the first batch of awardees.
According to the statement, officials of the foundation also gave verbal assurances. “The Secretary of the Foundation personally told many of us that we were in the second batch and that the process would commence immediately upon his return to the country,” the beneficiaries said, alleging that six weeks after his return, calls and messages have gone unanswered.
They explained that the assurances led many of them to make significant financial commitments, including obtaining international passports, medical tests, police clearance certificates, academic transcripts and travel preparations. Some beneficiaries said they took bank loans with interest, borrowed from family and friends and relied on community contributions in anticipation of the scholarship.
“The final reality we were forced to face is painful,” the statement read. “No foreign scholarship, no domestic scholarship as earlier promised, no reimbursement or compensation, no official explanation, no apology and no communication whatsoever.”
The beneficiaries said the situation has resulted in crushing debt, depression, emotional trauma, family pressure, loss of opportunities and social embarrassment.
In their appeal, the group called on the Governor of Yobe State, members of the National Assembly, the Yobe State House of Assembly, the Chairman of the Senator Ibrahim Mohammed Bomai Foundation, human rights organisations, civil society groups, traditional leaders and concerned Nigerians to intervene.
They specifically requested immediate consideration and support for all 46 candidates, fulfilment of the promised domestic scholarship or adequate compensation to cover documented financial losses and emotional suffering.
“We trusted the Foundation. We believed the public promises. We acted with sincerity, hope, and obedience,” the statement concluded. “Today, we are left with silence. We are left with debt. We are left with broken dreams.”
The statement was jointly signed by the 46 shortlisted beneficiaries of the Senator Ibrahim Mohammed Bomai Foundation Foreign Scholarship Programme.
