Children of well-to-do dominate bursary scheme

Tue, 03 Jan 2017 07:57:47 +0000

By Chikumbi Katebe

IT IS shameful, irresponsible and evil for children of well-to-do parents to be placed on bursary support at the expense of eligible and legitimate vulnerable children from poor households, says Zambia Centre for Social Development executive Lewis Mwape.

Mr Mwape said the Ministry of Higher Education must scrutinize the list of those students awarded bursaries for enrolment into university because some parents used their positions to facilitate access to the facility meant to benefit the poor and the vulnerable.

He said the inquiry should get rid of all those children whose parents and relatives took advantage of their positions at the expense of innocent hard working children from rural areas.

“Under the circumstances, it is shameful, irresponsible and evil on the part of the Bursaries Committee if some of the children from well-to-do families have been offered bursaries, leaving out eligible and legitimate children from vulnerable and poor households.

“Our concern is that more than 60 percent of those who have been left out on scheme might be poor and vulnerable and may not afford to meet the cost of university education especially those coming from rural areas and urban poor and vulnerable households,” he said.

He said the Ministry of Higher Education must re-screen the final list of those awarded bursaries and eliminate ‘‘heartless pretenders mocking the vulnerable’’.

He explained that members of the Bursaries Committee must act in a transparent and accountable manner in executing their mandate which had been compromised by selfish individuals in senior positions both in the public and private sector.

Mr Mwape explained that the number of children on the scheme should be revised upwards to accommodate more beneficiaries especially from rural areas.