Musawa addresses NYSC certificate scandal, says nothing wrong being corps member while serving as minister (Video)

Minister of Art, Culture, and Creative Economy Hannatu Musawa has firmly denied any misconduct regarding the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) controversy surrounding her appointment.

Musawa spoke on ‘Sunday Politics’, a Channels Television programme.

During the chat, Musawa was asked how she became a minister without an NYSC certificate.

An NYSC certificate or exemption letter is a mandatory requirement for persons seeking public offices.

The minister said the matter has been “adjudicated” and that one day she will give a “proper account” of what transpired.

She said she did not break the law, adding that she had undergone two years of national youth service in her lifetime.

“There have been so many different accounts of that particular situation. The fact that I’m sat here should tell you that I did not do anything wrong,” she said.

“I have not come out to set the records straight as to what really happened. The social media has just run rife with different accounts. The matter has been adjudicated and one day, I will come out with my own account.”

Asked if she owes Nigerians an explanation on the saga, the minister added that the only thing she can say is that she did nothing wrong.

“I did not break the law. I did NYSC and finished. I can assure you that nothing was done to break the law or regulation. Everything that I did was in accordance with the law,” she said.

The controversy began during Musawa’s 2023 ministerial screening when she failed to produce evidence of completing the mandatory NYSC scheme.

Her confirmation in 2023 subsequently led to a legal firework instituted by some aggrieved Nigerians who described her appointment without completing the mandatory service as an aberration.

However, in April 2024, Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed the case, stating the plaintiffs lacked the legal standing to sue.

The suit was filed by the Incorporated Trustees of Concerned Nigeria, Patrick Eholor and Thomas Marcus.

Musawa said she is remaining focused on her ministerial duties, emphasising she will not be distracted by the ongoing discussion.

Meanwhile, during the programme, asked whether she was worried that the President would drop her from his cabinet because of the “controversies” around her person, the minister said, “I don’t think there is a controversy about my person, and I don’t think there is a controversy about my office. What I can tell you is that I campaigned for the President and I trust his judgement.

“What I know of the President is that he has a vision and a mission to make Nigeria better than he met it. He is a very courageous man. As a leader, you have to take courageous decisions.

“For him to give Nigerians his deliverables, he needs a team of lieutenants to do that. I think it is healthy in any democracy and any administration for him to look at his cabinet and his lieutenants to see who are working in tandem with him to give those deliverables and if anybody isn’t, I think we have to trust his judgement.

“So, I am not worried because I know that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has the best interest of the nation and whatever he would make in terms of the restructuring or otherwise of his cabinet is going to be in the best interest of delivering his mission and vision for Nigerians.”

There have been calls from different quarters for the President to remove some of his ministers termed as underperforming. In late September, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga said his principal had expressed a desire to reshuffle his cabinet but no date was fixed for the exercise.