The Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brigadier General Yusha’u Ahmed, has revealed that the University of Calabar (UNICAL) once mobilized a bread seller for the national service scheme. This disclosure was made public in a statement issued on Saturday in Abuja by the NYSC’s Director of Information and Public Relations, Mr. Eddy Megwa.
According to Brig.-Gen. Ahmed, this incident underscores the NYSC’s ongoing efforts to prevent unqualified individuals from obtaining the NYSC Certificate of National Service. He emphasized that those found to be ineligible will face prosecution.
Ahmed further noted that 19 additional candidates who initially registered online for mobilization have been disqualified from service. In addition, four National Service Certificates were not issued to other implicated individuals. This brings the total to 178 voided certificates, including 101 previously invalidated by the scheme.
The Director-General commended the Vice-Chancellor of UNICAL, Professor Florence Obi, for her integrity in alerting the NYSC to the mobilization of unqualified graduates from the institution.
“The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calabar came forward to report that she had noticed some names on the institution’s list that should not have been there,” Ahmed said. “She checked the list provided by the school, and I assured her that their certificates would be invalidated. I commend the Vice-Chancellor for her vigilance.”
He went on to reveal that, previously, a bread seller had been falsely included on a graduation list from UNICAL. “There are bad actors in many places who generate fake matriculation numbers and courses for their candidates,” he added.
Brig.-Gen. Ahmed reiterated the NYSC’s commitment to thoroughly sanitizing its mobilization process. He stressed the importance of integrity among those responsible for inputting graduate data at Corps Producing Institutions and called on employers to verify the authenticity of NYSC certificates presented for job placements.
The NYSC plans to intensify collaboration with all relevant stakeholders to put an end to these fraudulent practices. Ahmed warned that any failure in the mobilization process reflects poorly on the integrity of the institution involved.
