The risk of having a Minister of Finance that can be blackmailed
There has been a deadly silence since July 7 when Premium Times broke a story that the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, may have forged her National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) exemption certificate. The online paper alleges that even though Adeosun finished her tertiary education at the age of 22, she got an exemption certificate from the NYSC in 2009 when she was not entitled to one. The law setting up the NYSC makes it mandatory for all Nigerians who finish their tertiary education before the age of 30 to undergo the one-year youth service programme, which is aimed at helping foster the country’s integration across multi-cultural lines.
But the NYSC has issued an official statement claiming that Adeosun applied for an exemption certificate. They did not state on what grounds she applied for an exemption certificate even though in the same statement they claim to be investigating how she purportedly got the exemption certificate she currently carries.
There are various grounds that one can apply for an exemption certificate from the NYSC. The most commonly used is if a graduated from a Nigerian or foreign tertiary institution when he or she is older than 30 years at the time of graduation. Also, graduates that have served in the Armed forces, DSS, or Nigeria Police for more than nine months at the point of graduation can also apply for exemption. Nigerian or foreign graduates who have also received national honours at the point of graduation can also apply for an exemption. Nigerians who did their tertiary education on a part time basis can apply for an ‘exclusion’ certificate since they are not eligible to participate in the scheme.
It is very difficult to see from the condition set above where Adeosun fits in. Obviously, she does not qualify for exemption based on any of the criteria set by the NYSC law. To put it bluntly, Adeosun should not be presenting an NYSC exemption certificate to any public or private institution. If she has one, then it is very difficult to argue that the certificate is not fake or forged. It is therefore baffling that the NYSC claims that it is still investigation an obvious case even after a past director general of the NYSC have come out to say categorically that there was no way she could have been issued an NYSC exemption certificate.
Since the allegation was published, Adeosun has neither refuted nor confirmed the allegation. Interestingly the Department of State Security (DSS), which screens all ministerial nominees before they are cleared by the Senate, has also not made any statement about the issue. Is it an admittance of guilt that they failed to do a thorough vetting of the minister? The Police has also been silent despite a clear case of criminal allegations of forgery being made.
Even of more concern has been the uncharacteristic silence from the National Assembly on the allegations being made against the Minister. The National Assembly has not called for a probe or a public hearing on the allegations. This silence from the National Assembly is even more worrisome considering that the Premium Times publication has also accused them of using the information on the minister to blackmail her. The National Assembly has not come out to officially deny that they have been blackmailing the minister to release funds to them.
The silence of all the key organisations that should investigate the allegation about the minister is really worrying. Why are they silent? Is the silence borne out of the need to protect a colleague or is it inspired by the more dangerous prospect that they have seen a loophole to get their hands on the country’s treasury?
Adeosun is the country’s treasury keeper. She determines and signs off on how and what cash is released to various ministries and parastatals. In any part of the world, her position is very influential and powerful. It is therefore very dangerous to have anyone vulnerable to blackmail holding the position of Minister of Finance. That vulnerability could be exploited by crooked individuals into misappropriating or even embezzling public funds. Ministers of Finance are usually of the highest form of integrity. The allegation hanging on Adeosun’s head has obviously dented her integrity.
Sadly, she has not come out to defend her integrity. It is important that if she cannot restore her integrity then she be relieved of her position, and this is mainly for her sake and that of the country, so that she does not become susceptible to further blackmail.
Besides, it does not speak well of the country that a Minister of Finance with unresolved ‘forgery allegations’ is seen representing the country at international fora. It is the kind of situation that does not instil confidence in global counterparties. Integrity is a valuable commodity in the global financial community and right now, the minister does not have much of it to hang on to.