Withheld NYSC certificate: SERAP urges Tinubu to intervene
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has called on President Bola Tinubu to intervene in the case of Ushie Rita Uguamaye, a National Youth Service Corps member known as ‘Raye,’ whose discharge certificate was withheld.
This appeal was part of a broader reaction from civil society groups and political figures who have condemned the NYSC’s action as a suppression of free speech.
The controversy began earlier in the year when Raye gained viral fame for a TikTok video in which she lamented the economic hardship in Nigeria under the current administration.
According to Raye, this video led to threats from NYSC officials who pressured her to delete the content.
Her ordeal escalated on her passing out day when she was denied her discharge certificate.
In its statement, SERAP, on Sunday, urged the president to use his office to protect the right to freedom of expression, a right enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution.
The group stated that such actions by a national institution set a dangerous precedent.
“Intimidating, harassing and silencing critical or dissenting voices under the guise of vague and unsubstantiated national security concerns is a fundamental breach of the Nigerian Constitution and Nigeria’s international human rights obligations,” SERAP said in a statement on Sunday.
The NYSC, in a statement released on Sunday, refuted claims that the action was politically motivated.
The scheme’s spokesperson, Caroline Embu, explained that Raye’s certificate was withheld because she, along with 130 other corps members, failed to attend the mandatory April biometric clearance.
The NYSC described the extension of her service year by two months as a standard disciplinary procedure consistent with its bye-laws, stressing that the action was not unique to her case.
However, Raye has countered the NYSC’s explanation, alleging that she was deliberately prevented from completing the clearance.
In a viral video on Saturday, she recounted how her Local Government Inspector repeatedly asked her to wait and then eventually seized her file and ordered her to leave.
The incident has drawn widespread condemnation.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and human rights lawyer Femi Falana have spoken out against the NYSC’s decision.
Human rights activist Omoyele Sowore has also pledged his support, crediting Raye’s activism with a recent increase in corps members’ allowances and vowing to fight until she gets justice.
