The latest overall best graduate of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Olugbenga Oladepo, who thanked the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) for its impact on his academic success, is scheduled to meet President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NELFUND, Akintunde Sawyerr, who disclosed this to DevReporting in an exclusive conversation, said both he and the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, had already felicitated him on the phone ahead of the visit.

He said, “He is coming to us alongside the university’s Vice-Chancellor on Tuesday, and we will also take him to the President.”

Mr Sawyerr, who commended the scholar for his achievement and for recognising his agency, noted that the real success is not in celebrating only Mr Oladepo, but a cohort of many beneficiaries of the scheme, who he noted are scattered across the country.

The latest development is coming amidst the mixed reactions trailing Mr Oladepo’s public acknowledgement of NELFUND, with some praising both his result and his conduct, while critics accused him of politicising his achievement.

Many Nigerians have, however, called on NELFUND to waive Mr Oladepo’s loan as a mark of honour in recognition of his academic feat.

Many Nigerians on social media have also decided to gift the scholar, saying his achievement should be celebrated and encouraged, rather than condemned. 

Background

With a Cumulative Gradient Point Average (CGPA) of 4.89 out of a possible 5.0, Mr Oladepo of the Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, was announced the university’s best graduate during the convocation ceremonies for the 2025/2026 academic session. 

The scholar, who claimed he grew up in a village without electricity for nine years in Osun State, said his family had no television and had relied on lanterns and candles to read before gaining university admission.

In an emotional post on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Oladepo said he attended public primary and secondary schools because private ones were unaffordable, noting that every morning, he walked miles to school while his parents worked multiple jobs to keep the household running.

The circumstances surrounding his background may have informed his public acknowledgement of NELFUND on Thursday, when he wrote, “I’m honoured to let you know that I am the Best Graduating Student of LAUTECH. Your loans made it possible.”

In response, NELFUND posted, “Congratulations, Caleb! Your achievement is truly inspiring, and we’re proud to have played a part in your journey. This is exactly the impact we strive for- empowering students to excel”.

Backlash

Following the criticisms he received from a section of Nigerians for commending the government over what they described as a loan, Mr Oladepo on Friday responded with a follow-up post, explaining his position.

He said, “Amid the flood of felicitations following my convocation as Overall Best Graduating Student of LAUTECH, I find it necessary to address the stir around my NELFUND appreciation post.

“I accept the praise, life-changing offers and the backlash, in good faith. Still, it is only fair to set the record straight.

“I hail from a village in Osun State, raised in a modest family of five. I attended public primary and secondary schools, not by choice, but because even the most inexpensive private schools were beyond our means,” he continued.

“Even then, survival itself; food and clothing was a daily struggle. I walked miles to school each morning, while my parents laboured as jacks-of-all-trades to make ends meet.

“For nine defining years before I entered university, we lived within sight of basic amenities yet beyond our reach, no electricity, no television; just lanterns and candles.”

He said he earned a scholarship and, with it, a first-class degree.

He said it was only in his third year as an undergraduate that the father of one of his coursemates he had once tutored, gave him his first smartphone, which he said he still uses. He also said lecturers occasionally provided him with clothing.

“There are many other instances, too numerous to recount. Not all of us are born with a silver spoon. Some of us climbed the ladder by holding on to every rung of legitimate support we could find,” he wrote

He also addressed those who felt his gratitude toward NELFUND was unnecessary or misplaced.

He wrote, “As an engineering student aspiring to make academic history, should I resort to blaming my family’s financial situation for my inability to afford fees and essentials like a reliable smartphone or laptop needed for skills and certifications? 

“For me personally, NELFUND was not incidental; it was instrumental. To acknowledge what helped one’s journey is neither propaganda nor misplaced allegiance. It is simply an act of appreciation.”

“NELFUND not just about Oladepo”

Speaking on the importance of NELFUND, Mr Sawyerr said nations are great simply because the people are given the educational opportunities they deserve.

Mr Sawyerr said; “Let me say to you that nations are great because the people are given the educational opportunity they deserve, and that is why Iran is still standing today. While Iran was kept under sanctions for many years, it kept on educating its people.

“So that is why we are saying this NELFUND project isn’t a two or three-year programme. It is a 25-year strategic work. By the time this thing will take its firm root, some of us would have gone. So, for me, it is a strategy of the state to liberate the people.”

Mr Sawyerr thanked President Tinubu and the education minister, saying their vision is driving the change. “So it is for all of us to be in the same direction. I will tell you that there are many others we didn’t talk about it and there are many others to come. So rather than celebrating one, we should be celebrating a cohort.”  

“The world today isn’t about resources but about knowledge. Nigeria wouldn’t be about oil or Uranium, but about knowledge that can tap the resources and turn them into revenue. Neither Bill Gates nor Elon Musk inherited oil rigs from their parents, but knowledge has made them who they are today,” the NELFUND boss said.

About NELFUND

Established in 2024 to administer the Nigeria Student Loan Scheme, through an enabling act of parliament, NELFUND has supported a total of 1,388,592 students since its portal was launched on 24 May, 2024.

According to the agency’s dashboard, a total of N242,400,915,093.25 billion has been disbursed as of 2 April 2026, comprising both institutional fees and upkeep allowances paid directly to students.