Prominent pro-transparency and good governance strategic campaigners, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has asked the management of the National Youths Service Corp Scheme to immediately file notice of appeal to challenge the validity of the Federal High Court judgment which validated the NYSC’S certificate of discharge which was deemed forged by the issuing authority.

HURIWA lamented that with just few days to the close of the window of appeal against the Federal High court’s judgment, the NYSC has failed to proceed on appeal in what looks like either a compromise or sudden surrender of the hierarchy of NYSC on the damaging allegations of certificate forgery which the NYSC from the highest echelons of the hierarchy, accused the Enugu State governor Mr. Peter Mbah of forging his NYSC’S certificate which he purportedly presented to the Independent National Electoral Commission as part of his academic certificated to run for the exalted office of the governor of Enugu State which he eventually won. Mr. A.B Mahmoud the erstwhile President of the Nigerian Bar Association confirmed that he was hired for the purposes of the appeal but that his brief hasn’t been perfected as at the time HURIWA contacted the Senior Advocate of Nigeria.

HURIWA claimed without any shadows of doubts that meticulous checks and facts made available to HURIWA from the Appeal Court of Nigeria headquarters in Abuja undoubtedly revealed that the NYSC is yet to appeal against the judgment involving Governor Mbah over allegations of falsification of certificate. Although the timeframe for the appeal will be elapsed by next month. Window of appeal will close on February 25^th. “We the people of Nigeria are urging the NYSC to challenge the Federal High Court judgment unless they have either been compromised to abandon this most important legal steps to prove the allegations against Governor Peter Mbah as made by the NYSC. HURIWA warned that failure to appeal will sink to the gutters the corporate image of the NYSC.”

HURIWA recalled that over three months ago, Abuja division b of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja had dismissed the allegation of forgery against the Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah.

The court also imposed a fine of N5 million on NYSC for alleging that the corps’ discharge certificate held by Mbah was fake.

Mbah had sued the NYSC and its Director, Corps Certification, Ibrahim Muhammad, for publishing a disclaimer, denying the issuance of a discharge certificate issued to him on January 6, 2003.

But the NYSC, in its preliminary objection dated May 19 and filed May 22, sought an order dismissing or striking out the suit for want of jurisdiction and competence.

Delivering judgment on the matter on Monday, Justice Inyang Ekwo held that the certificate presented to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, by Mbah, was authentic and validly issued by the NYSC.

Ekwo added that the Director-General of the NYSC and the corps, who were defendants in the suit, were guilty of misrepresentation of material facts.

The court said Mbah, midway into his service, sought and, after receiving permission from the NYSC to attend the Nigeria Law School, was reinstated into the NYSC in 2003.

The court held that with the unchallenged evidence of the plaintiff on how the discharge certificate was issued to him in 2003 by NYSC after serving in a law firm in Lagos and the inability of the Corps to come up with counterevidence, it was crystal clear that the plaintiff served the mandatory one-year service.

Among others, Justice Ekwo held that the onus to prove forgery allegations lies heavily on the NYSC, stating that the organisation failed in that regard.

The court found that Mbah’s evidence was heavier and more believable.

HURIWA calls on the NYSC to appeal that judgment because of the profound implications and moral burdens imposed on the NYSC to prove their sensational claims against the Enugu State governor or the NYSC should loudly apologise to Enugu State governor and Nigerians who became convince about the allegations made NYSC against Peter Mbah. “That judgment if not vacated means that the capacity to issue certificate by the NYSC has been invalidated.”

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