KEY POINTS
- Musawa avoids discussing the NYSC certificate scandal.
- A court dismissed the legal case against her in April 2024.
- The minister maintains she has broken no laws.
Hannatu Musawa, the Minister of Art, Culture, and the Creative Economy resisted answering questions about the controversy surrounding her National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate on Sunday because she didn’t want to be distracted.
Musawa dismisses NYSC certificate controversy
Musawa, the former adviser to the president on culture and entertainment, commented as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
According to a report by Punch, the minister has been under scrutiny for failing to provide the Nigerian Senate with evidence of completing the mandatory NYSC scheme when she appeared for screening after President Bola Tinubu submitted her name for confirmation.
Her confirmation in 2023 led to legal action by some Nigerians, who argued her appointment without completing the NYSC was improper. The case was dismissed in April 2024 when Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that the plaintiffs lacked the legal standing to sue.
Reflecting on the controversy after one year in office, Musawa said she was not prepared to discuss the matter until an unspecified time when she would provide her account of events.
“I don’t know what you have heard. There have been so many different accounts of that particular situation. The fact that I am sitting here means that I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said. “But I have not come out to set the record straight as to what happened. Social media has just run rife with different accounts.
A court dismissed the legal case against her in April 2024
“The matter had been adjudicated, and one day, I will come out with my account. I have probably done more NYSC than you,” she added, referring to the presenter. “I have done at least two NYSCs in my life.”
When pressed further on why she was avoiding the question despite her duty to be accountable to Nigerians, the minister reiterated her stance.
“I think what I owe Nigerians is to say that I didn’t do anything wrong; I didn’t break the law. Did and finished the NYSC. That is all I can tell you. Everything I did was by the law,” she said.
“That is why I also said that one day I would come out with my account of what happened to set the record straight. As of now, I think it is important for me to focus on delivering results for Nigerians.”
Musawa also declined to confirm whether she completed the youth service while in office.
