NYSC confirms Minister of Arts, Musawa, is a serving Corps member

The Director, Press and Public Relations of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Eddy Megwa, has confirmed that the Minister of Arts and Culture, Mrs Hannatu Musawa, who is currently doing her one-year youth service is occupying the ministerial position in breach of the NYSC Act.

According to a report by DailyTrust, the minister had been serving for the past eight months in the FCT.

Megwa explained that it was against the NYSC Act for any corps member to pick up any government appointment until the one-year service was over.

He said Mrs Musawa was originally mobilised in 2001 for the youth service to Ebonyi State where she had her orientation programme but later relocated to Kaduna State to continue the programme.

He said it was when she got to Kaduna that she absconded and didn’t complete the programme.

Megwa noted that the scheme would look into the issue and take action where necessary.

NewsWireNGR reports that the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) had alleged that the Minister, Hannatu Musawa is a serving member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

According to a statement by HURIWA on Thursday, Musawa dumped her NYSC scheme in Ebonyi state, many years back, but later showed interest in completing it.

The group claimed that the minister was mobilised this year and got posted to a law firm in Abuja before her appointment.

It then urged the NYSC to compel Musawa to focus on either her national youth service or the ministerial appointment.

“She was confirmed by the senate without proper screening and sworn in by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as minister of arts

“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 a youth corper,” the statement added.

In September 2020, former President Muhammadu Buhari nominated Musawa as a national commissioner representing the north-west geopolitical zone on the national pension commission board.

But the senate in October of the same year rejected her nomination over a report from the committee on establishment and public service matters that Musawa failed to provide her NYSC certificate or exemption letter.

An NYSC certificate or exemption letter is a mandatory requirement for those seeking public offices on the basis of election or appointment.

When the culture minister appeared before the senate during the ministerial screening, the lawmakers did not ask her any questions regarding her NYSC certificate.

Meanwhile, the minister has not made any statement regarding this.