Ebun Francis|
The pressure continued to mount on Monday for the resignation of Kemi Adeosun, Nigeria’s finance minister, with lawyer, Mr. Francis Obalim, and a political party, Action Peoples Party, filing separate suits asking the Federal High Court in Abuja to order her sacking on the grounds that she allegedly forged the NYSC discharge certificate which she submitted to the Senate during her screening exercise in 2015.
The lawyer, the plaintiff in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/712/2018, applied for an order quashing and setting aside Mrs. Adeosun’s appointment as a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to Obalim, Adeosun’s appointment should be quashed in the light of the revelation that she forged NYSC exemption certificate. He argued that Adeosun circumvented the mandatory conditions in sections 12, 13 and 14 of the NYSC Act, an integral part of the 1999 Constitution.
He maintained that Adeosun, who was listed as the 1st defendant, was not qualified to be employed by the Federal Government of Nigeria either as a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria or in any other capacity whatsoever, without first presenting a valid discharge certificate issued by the NYSC.
The plaintiff, through his counsel, Mr. Johnmary Jideobi, sought an order of perpetual injunction restraining Federal Government from further according a ministerial status to Adeosun until she presented a valid certificate of discharge regularly issued by the NYSC.
Adeosun, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami; the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki; and the Clerk of the Senate, are the respondents to the suit.
The Action Peoples Party also sued the finance minister, President Muhammadu Buhari, the AGF and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission, as defendants in its suit marked, FHC/ABJ/CS/714/2018.
The party, through its lawyer, Mr. Kingdom Okere, asked the court to, among others, declare that Adeosun “is not qualified to be appointed a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria or into any other public office, having not participated in the compulsory one-year National Youth Service scheme, in view of the combined provisions of sections 11,12, 13 and 17 of the National Youth Service Act.”
APP equally prayed for an order directing Adeosun to refund the salaries she had received since 2015 when she was appointed as a minister and another order compelling the Federal Government to prosecute her.
It also prayed the court to declare that Adeosun, “is not a fit and proper person to continue to occupy the office she presently occupies having presented a fake NYSC exemption certificate and made a false, untrue and misleading statement/representation material to the National Youth Service Corps; and having breached her oath of office to uphold and defend the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).”
It, therefore, prayed for a consequential order directing President Buhari “who claims that his administration is fighting corruption to immediately sack or suspend Mrs. Kemi Adeosun as the Minister of Finance pending investigation and her prosecution for forgery and perjury.”
The party also prayed for an order compelling “the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Commission, to immediately arrest and investigate the allegation of fake National Youth Service Corps exemption certificate against Mrs. Kemi Adeosun; and to immediately prefer a criminal charge against Mrs Kemi Adeosun for the offence of perjury, forgery, false, misleading and untrue information in relation to her fake National Youth Service certificate of exemption.”
Since the news of the alleged certificate forgery broke last week, many including the opposition Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), has called on President Buhari to sack and prosecute the finance minister.
The Nationa Youth Service Corps on Monday said it is investigating the circumstances surrounding the issuance of the said certificate.