South Africa’s National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has been paying hefty monthly allowances to almost 158,000 “ghost students” who do not actually exist, according to a forensic probe described in a News24 report on Monday.
The probe discovered that former NSFAS chief executive Andile Nongogo personally selected four firms that made direct monthly payments of 1,650 South African rand apiece (about $88) to 1.1 million students on the program’s rolls.
Before Nongogo implemented this payment scheme, the previous method involved processing payments through tertiary financial institutions, which evidently provided more accuracy, oversight, and efficiency.
According to News24, Nongogo’s four hand-picked financial companies have paid allowances to only 390,000 legitimate students since July, while about $14 million was disbursed to parties unknown – including 157,980 “ghost students,” according to the forensic auditor.
Nongogo was suspended in August over suspicions that he was looting the student funding scheme, allegations driven in part by the discovery that some of the service providers he selected for disbursing the funds were his former employees from a company called Services SETA, where he was formerly the chief executive officer.
The NSFAS board held an emergency meeting on Monday and decided to sack Nongogo. The board said it was unsatisfied with his responses to the allegations of financial impropriety, and felt Nongogo had generally been derelict in his duties.
“You have failed to promote and protect the best interests of NSFAS; you have failed to act with the required care and diligence; you failed to promote compliance with all statutory obligations imposed on NSFAS; you have failed to carry out the responsibilities under this contract with the highest standards of conduct, honesty and integrity appropriate for a public entity,” the board wrote in Nongogo’s letter of dismissal.