There is a concern over the rise in misuse of HELB loans among students across Kenyan universities.
Unlike in the past when such loans were used by beneficiaries to pay their tuition fees and to the extent of feeding their families and paying for their siblings' school fees, the trend has changed over the time.
Normally, when students are allocated loans from the financier, they become attracted more to things outside the classroom than matters academics.
At the end, most fail to pay their tuition fees as required.
Evelyne (not her real name), says since her classmate got her first HELB loan, she has deliberately missed lectures despite efforts to talk to her.
She says her colleague normally hangs out with her other friends during weekends and fails to come for classes on weekdays. When exams draw near, she moves up and down looking for notes in the last minute rush.
Evelyne comments that misuse of the loan on irrelevant activities has contributed to her friend’s downfall. Several comrades have mishandled their loans through various forms such as gambling.
Victor, a student at Kisii University, says gambling has become the talk of the day.
He notes that betting is addictive like drugs once a person enters the game it's hard to quit. He began with Sh100 but now he bets with sh1,000.
Moreover, he has joined a group on social media where they analyse and come up with betting ideas they call ‘sure bets’ to predict possible wins for the teams.
Although he sometimes wins money from football betting, he has spent much of his loan on gambling.
Drugs and substance abuse is another challenge facing most university students.s.
The spontaneous growth of clubs in towns is largely contributed by the campus students with love for 'brown bottles.' During weekends, both campus men and women will be spotted making their way to popular clubs.
Most campus dudes use the loan to sustain their relationships. They want to impress their girlfriends buying them everything they ask for.
Others have opted to cohabit out of lust for early marriages. Social trips are other engagements students waste their loans on.
Campus are full of hikes to various areas such as lakes, national parks, beaches and other places. They spent much on leisure activities and forget to concentrate on class work.
Among the many incidences, varsity students misuse HELB loans, psychologists say the students need guidance on its usage.
Peter Omae, a psychologist based at Maseno University, says,
"The students need to be counselled constantly before and after being given the loan, with close monitoring from the financier," he said.
He added that they should be reminded that the loans are not free but must be refunded.