Eko Hot Blog reports that the management of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has confirmed that the newly inaugurated Minister of Art, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, is a serving corps member.
The confirmation follows a claim by the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), a civil society organisation, that Musawa is undertaking the one-year mandatory youth service scheme while she is still a member of President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet.
According to The Cable, NYSC spokesperson, Eddy Megwa, confirmed the minister’s status on Thursday.
“Yes she is a serving corp member,” Megwa wrote in a message to the media platform when he was contacted for enquiries.
On Monday, Tinubu swore in 45 ministers, including Musawa as members of the federal executive council (FEC).
But in a statement on Wednesday, HURIWA claimed that the culture minister is a serving member of NYSC, whose place of primary assignment is a law firm in Abuja.
The rights group asked the management of the NYSC to compel Musawa to focus on her national youth service or the ministerial appointment.
“HURIWA wondered why the correct status of Musawa wasn’t made known to the members of the public before the senate sensationally failed to screen her as it should,” the statement reads.
“HURIWA wonders about the kind of scrutiny being conducted by the Department of State Services so much so that it wasn’t disclosed that the minister is actually a youth corper.”
The rights group alleged that years back, Musawa abandoned her NYSC in Ebonyi state but later showed interest in completing it.
“She was confirmed by the senate without proper screening and sworn in by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as minister of arts,” HURIWA further alleged.
The Senate had in October 2020 rejected Musawa’s nomination as a national commissioner representing the north-west geopolitical zone on the National Pension Commission board over a report from the Committee on Establishment and Public Service Matters that she failed to provide her NYSC certificate or exemption letter.
However, the Senate did not ask her any questions regarding her NYSC certificate during the ministerial screening.
An NYSC certificate or exemption letter is a mandatory requirement for those seeking public offices on the basis of election or appointment.
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