The Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL) has welcomed the decision of the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, to resign from office over lingering allegations that she possesses a forged National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, exemption certificate.
Mr. Ikenna Aghagbobi, CACOL ’s media and publications officer, in a statement on Saturday, quoted Mr. Debo Adeniran, the group’s executive chairman as saying that the action, though belated, was the outcome of a massive pressure mounted on the Federal Government by the media and the civil society.
Adeniran recalled that Adeosun’s NYSC certificate forgery saga gained a lot of public attention from July 10th when it was first published by an online newspaper.
He stressed: “So far, a lot of petitions, press releases and statements have been issued to address the factors surrounding her NYSC certificate scandal and how it negates all that President Buhari administration stands for.
“We also recall writing a petition to the President asking her to resign her position or respond to the allegations leveled against her.
“While we welcome her decision to quit office, we are not satisfied as her resignation is a confirmation that she indeed forged the NYSC discharge certificate and tendered it as authentic to enable her occupy various public offices since she returned to the country. This, we view as a criminal act which must attract punishment.”
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Adeniran added: “Sadly, we live in a society where gross levels of dishonesty and corruption have been perpetrated by those who are meant to be setting good examples for other members of the society to emulate. These individuals end up sending wrong messages and automatically set the stage for breeding future social deviants in the society.
“While we commend the present administration in its drive to eradicate corruption from our society, a situation where there is a deafening silence to corruption allegations from both the government and the accused is no longer acceptable.”
He stressed that another high ranking public official whose case needed to be tackled without further delay was that of President Buhari’s Special Assistant on Prosecutions, Chief Okoi Obono-Obla.
Adeniran stated: “Obono-Obla has been indicted by a House of Representatives panel over forgery of the West African School Certificate (WASC).
“Officials of West African Examination Council’s (WAEC) who appeared on the floor of the House of Representatives to testify in his case revealed that Obla’s certificate was a product of fraud.
“It is therefore pertinent to state that the allegations levelled against Obono-Obla should be treated with dispatch and resolved on the side of truth and supremacy of the law.”
