Woman Who Received COVID-19 Loan of N250k Cries out over Amount Taken from Her Account Years Later
- A Nigerian woman has raised an alarm on social media about the unexpected deductions made to her bank accounts, years after she received a COVID-19 loan of N250k
- In her defence, the woman admitted that she thought the money was for empowerment at the time and did not know she was expected to repay it at a later date
- Three years after she received the N250k, she said she received a debit alert, and in 2026, money was removed from her accounts
Maria-Goretti Jiwuaku, a Nigerian woman who received a COVID-19 loan of N250k, has cried out on Facebook after receiving debit transactions to her bank accounts years later.
Tagging the N250k as "Hope Uzodinma 250k COVID-19 Empowerment", Maria explained that she was made to believe that the money was a giveaway and not a loan at the time.
Source: Facebook
Maria thought she would not have to repay later until she began to get debits. According to Maria, it first started three years after the pandemic when N110k was removed from the account she used in receiving the loan.
Then, recently, Maria said she received another round of debits from her other bank accounts, suggesting that the loan provider has access to all her accounts.
COVID-19 loan: Woman seeks solution
In her Facebook post on March 25, Maria released screenshots of the debit alerts she received and appealed to netizens for assistance on how to check her loan balance to confirm how much she has to pay in total.
Maria wondered if the loan had interest. She wrote:
"Omo if you see anywhere they are sharing free money in Nigeria, no involve me oh.
"I collected the Hope Uzodinma 250k COVID 19 Empowerment.
"They said it was a dash oh.
"3 years back they withdrew 110k from the particular account I used to collect the money.
"I stopped using the account.
"I just said let me sleep now and saw debits, my eyes first blur .
"The debits were from my different accounts which means they have access to all my accounts.
"Please how do I check the balance I have to pay?
"Does the money have interest?
"God abeg oh."
Findings by Legit.ng indicate that thousands of Nigerians collected the COVID-19 intervention loans during the pandemic but did not repay them for years, with many believing the funds were government grants rather than repayable loans.
However, NIRSAL Microfinance Bank had since begun aggressively recovering the loans, leading to debit alerts hitting bank accounts nationwide.
Source: Facebook
See the woman's Facebook post below:
COVID-19 loan: Woman's outcry stirs reactions
Legit.ng has compiled some reactions to the woman's outcry below:
Lynda Amarachi Alisigwe said:
"Go to their office we're in the boat.
"Locate the nearest NMFB around you, just give them your BVN and they'll check the amount paid and balance to be paid."
Chinazaekpere Umunna Tolany said:
"I have a friend currently undergoing same thing.
"They kept debiting her eh. The interested?? Too much!! They have your bvn so you can’t have money elsewhere. She had to be using her sisters account. In February she went and paid off all at once. Guess what?? They debited her again, immediately she threatened to sue them, they sent her back her money."
Nwosu Harrison said:
"Just visit nirsal mfb site, click loan repayment, put your BVN and see the amount you have left to pay and the amount/pattern u have been paying the loan u took since disbursement."
Ameenour Abour NerArlie Kaurah said:
"Follow these simple steps, email crs@nmfb.com.ng about your complain.
"They will respond by sending you a link with reference no through email after some hours they will send you email with a link, once you put that reference no a page will open for you with the exact outstanding balance."
In a related story, Legit.ng reported that a man had petitioned the EFCC and CBN to intervene in the alleged unauthorised deductions from his account by NIRSAL Microfinance Bank over a COVID-19 grant he received.
Reactions trail COVID-19 loan debits
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Nigerians had reacted to unexpected COVID-19 loans debited from their bank accounts.
Some affected Nigerians who spoke to Legit.ng alleged that facilitators and agents who introduced the scheme misled citizens by describing the funds as “free money” meant to cushion the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown.
According to multiple accounts obtained by Legit.ng, deductions reportedly began as early as March 2025 but became more frequent around November and December, catching beneficiaries unprepared.
Source: Legit.ng
