By Our Reporter
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has identified four discrepancies in a certificate purportedly issued to former Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, insisting that the document was not issued by the corps.
An Assistant Director in the NYSC Department of Certification, Yusuf Jumare, disclosed this on Tuesday while testifying as the second prosecution witness in the alleged certificate forgery and money laundering case against Nnaji at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Jumare, who appeared before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, said an investigation conducted by his department following a request from the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) established that the disputed certificate was not authentic.
The ICPC is prosecuting the former minister in charge number FHC/ABJ/CR/389/2026 over allegations bordering on certificate forgery and money laundering.
Nnaji, who resigned from President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet following the controversy surrounding his academic qualifications, is the Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate in the forthcoming Enugu State governorship election.
Led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Jimoh Abdulmumuni (SAN), Jumare identified four irregularities which, according to him, showed that the certificate purportedly issued to Nnaji was not a genuine NYSC document.
First, he said the certificate number indicated that it was issued in 1985 but carried the prefix ‘A’, which the NYSC did not introduce until 1990.
Second, he faulted the call-up number on the document, explaining that it contained four digits, ‘0137’, instead of the five digits used by the corps in 1985.
Third, Jumare said the certificate indicated that Nnaji completed 13 months of national service rather than the statutory 12-month period.
The fourth discrepancy, he explained, concerned the designation of the NYSC official who purportedly signed the certificate.
According to the witness, the head of the corps was designated a ‘Director’ during the period Nnaji allegedly completed his service, whereas the disputed document bore the designation ‘National General’.
The prosecution subsequently tendered copies of correspondence between the ICPC and the NYSC concerning the disputed certificate. The documents were admitted in evidence, although the defence reserved its objections to their admissibility until a later stage, citing the fact that it had not been served with the documents.
Prosecution counsel explained that he had only recently taken over the case and promised to make the documents available to the defence.
During cross-examination by Nnaji’s counsel, Bode Olanipekun (SAN), Jumare maintained that the certificate was not issued by the NYSC.
He explained that his department was responsible for keeping records of certificates issued by the corps, which are presented to corps members after successfully completing their service year.
The witness further stated that NYSC call-up letters were transmitted to universities for collection by graduates, while the institutions were responsible for forwarding the names of eligible graduates to the corps for mobilisation.
However, under further questioning, Jumare admitted that he did not establish whether Nnaji had ever been issued a certificate by the NYSC.
His testimony came barely a week after an ICPC investigator, SP Yakubu Ibrahim, told the same court that the NYSC and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, had disowned certificates attributed to the former minister.
Ibrahim had testified that UNN informed the commission that Nnaji did not fulfil the academic requirements for the award of the Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology and Biochemistry attributed to him.
The investigator also said the university confirmed that the degree certificate was not issued by the institution.
He further disclosed that the ICPC investigation revealed that Nnaji received approximately N29.5m in salaries and allowances during his tenure as minister before resigning.
The commission alleged that Nnaji presented forged academic and NYSC certificates to secure his ministerial appointment in 2023 and subsequently received public funds through the appointment.
The former minister was arraigned on a six-count charge bordering on alleged certificate forgery, money laundering and abuse of office. He pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
Justice Abdulmalik adjourned the case until November 30 for the continuation of Jumare’s cross-examination and January 29, 2027, for further proceedings