By Friday Olokor
The Civil Liberties Organisation on Monday warned against undermining the laudable aims and objectives for which the National Youth Service Corps was established, saying it must not be destroyed.
The organisation called attention to the integrity of the NYSC, a scheme established in 1973 to promote national unity and withstood political pressures for the past 50 years.
The National Treasurer of CLO, Halima Ibrahim, raised the observation during an interactive session with journalists in Abuja, citing concerns over an increasing trend of certificate forgery by public office holders and the potential destruction of the NYSC as a reputable public institution.
At the event, the President of CLO, Igho Akeregha, called on the judiciary to act decisively and preserve the integrity of the NYSC scheme.
He warned that failure to deliver justice in some cases would spell the end of the NYSC.
Akeregha called for vigilance from Nigerians and appealed to the judiciary to protect the NYSC from desperate politicians.
Ibrahim said that over the years, the NYSC had demonstrated exemplary courage and fairness in the discharge of its duties and responsibilities, and, has in all cases, refused to be cowed by the barbaric intimidations of politicians.
She said, “However, there is an emerging dangerous trend that needs to be nipped in the bud before it destroys the NYSC as a public institution of repute. This trend has to do with the increasing cases of certificate forgery by some politicians and ruling elites in Nigeria.
“The CLO is concerned and dismayed that some public office holders in the country who occupy offices of public trust are involved in the forgery of public documents including educational results and the NYSC discharge certificate.”
