Former presidential campaign spokesman of President Bola Tinubu, Dr. Josef Onoh has risen in defence of the newly appointed Minister for Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa against the recent attacks on her for emerging a serving minister without concluding her National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
Human right lawyers such as Femi Falana had raised the alarm that Hannatu was still in the NYSC service year while being appointed as a Minister, but Onoh said that what Hannatu’s critics are doing is balderdash.
According to Onoh, Hanatu has not broken any law for a accepting to serve as a minister while in service year as alleged, disclosing that the constitution is clear on what the NYSC can do which he said is to remobilize her anytime in future if she absconds from service.
“Now that she is a Minister under public scrutiny, it doesn’t matter if she wrote to the NYSC about her appointment or not, what the Scheme can do is to cancel her service year; and so whenever she finishes as a minister, she can come back for remobilisation.
“She’s already appointed as a minister even though it’s presumed she is still serving and so the maximum the NYSC can do is not to issue her a certificate at the end of her service year. By her accepting to be a minister, she has indirectly agreed to be remobilized at any time in the future.
“She did not tender any NYSC certificate and has not been faulted for not meeting with the constitutional requirement of being a minister. Infact it’s high time all political office holders simply stick to tendering the minimum requirements as stated in the Constitution to put an end to all these academic and certificate drama that Nigerians have become obsessed with.
“Nigerians have placed glorification of certificates and bogus qualifications above service delivery, above competence, above advancement. Majority of our foreign contractors don’t possess bogus qualification but make up same in experience and today they are in our country controlling our PhD. holders who only speak good English but lack technical experience.
“So the hullaballo of accusing our DSS of not conducting proper screen on her is also not a constitutional requirement either. Although the DSS will in some cases screen and issue security reports and advise on persons of intrest discreetly and professionally done. It’s at the discretion of the President to heed the advise or not. Hence we must still commend the DSS and all other security personnels in our country for their sacrifices and not attempt to malign their efforts trying to score cheap political goals. If any Nigerian feels their job is easy, don’t be a coward, be brave enough to enroll.
“The disgruntled opposition elements against Hannatu can go to court and not to come to the media, trying to score cheap political points on a non-issue.
“As for the NYSC, the only time Hanatu will have an issue with her is if at the end of the present service batch that she was enrolled into elapses and she shows up to claim a discharge certificate while she is a minister. If at the end of her appointment as a minister and she has no other calling, she can reapply for remobilisation.
“Obviously, this a case of one crying more than the bereaved. It is her that has lost the number of months she has already put in. She’s not stepping down because she she has not broken any known section of the law.
“We served in the same directorate in the PCC, she was our deputy spokesperson and we never found her wanting, hence I will continue to defend her against those who want to tarnish her image because when all of us were in the Presidential Campaign none of the people talking now raised objection when she was working to climb to her present lader.
“Those talking are not accusing the President of appointing an incompetent person because they know she’s competent enough to serve as a minister for Tourism and any iota to tarnish her image will not be tolerated, just like she will not join issues with charlatans and if anybody feels she has done anything wrong, the person should go to court,” Onoh said.
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