The Nigeria Integrity Movement (NIM), a Civil Society Organisation (CSO), has urged President Bola Tinubu to allow a transparent probe into Interior Minister’s NYSC certificate controversy.
The group also called for a transparent probe of the NYSC certificate of Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, saying any cover-up would erode government’s credibility and invite political exploitation.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja on Thursday, the convener of the group, Davies Ijele, described calls by some interest groups for the president to shield the minister as dangerous and damaging to the government’s reputation for rule-based governance.
Ijele said that regardless of a minister’s performance, the rule of law must take precedence and any allegation of forgery or irregularity should be fully and transparently examined.
He therefore urged the president to resist pressure to protect any appointee accused of document irregularities, calling for an open, authoritative investigation into allegations surrounding the minister’s NYSC certificate.
According to him, the fact that Tunji-Ojo is seen as a high-performing official does not place him above the law.
“President Tinubu should direct the minister to submit to independent scrutiny so the public can be satisfied that the documents he submitted on nomination are authentic.
“This call for scrutiny is predicated on a report that raised questions about discrepancies in Tunji-Ojo NYSC records and the timing of his certificate issuance.”
The convener added that an investigation by a national media has prompted the NYSC to respond, saying the minister was first mobilised in 2006, absconded, and was later remobilised in 2019 with his certificate produced in 2023 after an administrative omission delayed printing.
He questioned technical gaps in the NYSC response to media queries for example, how a remobilised trainee could serve simultaneously with other public duties and why the certificate was not produced until years after his reported completion date.
He therefore called for a full, impartial probe of both the minister’s records and the administrative processes at the NYSC to determine where responsibility lies.
“The corps described the certificate as genuine, but its explanation left some observers seeking further clarification about the sequence of events,” he said.
Ijele warned that accepting calls for a cover-up would therefore hand opponents a potent political issue and damage Tinubu’s anti-corruption and good-governance credentials.
He recalled a precedent where a minister stepped down amid certificate controversy, saying voluntary transparency or resignation when wrongdoing is established helps protect institutional integrity.
“We are not on a political witch-hunt. We demand the truth if there were administrative lapses at the NYSC, those must be fixed; if the minister’s documents are flawed, the law must take its course,” he stressed.
He appealed to President Tinubu to direct the relevant security and oversight agencies including the Department of State Services and anti-corruption bodies where appropriate to investigate the matter and report publicly.
“Decisive, transparent action will reassure Nigerians and strengthen confidence in the administration’s commitment to accountability,” Ijele added.
The All Progressives Congress, APC in Rivers on Tuesday, slammed what it described as a coordinated smear campaign by desperate politicians to tarnish the image of Tunji-Ojo, declaring the attacks “dead on arrival.”
APC spokesperson in the state, Darlington Nwauju, said recent social media publications pushing recycled allegations against the Minister are a failed attempt to distract a performing public servant whose track record speaks louder than propaganda.