CAIFAL sues DG NYSC over corp members mobilisation fraud
(Nigeria) The Citizens Advocacy Initiative for Accountable Leadership, CAIFAL, has dragged the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, before a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, over alleged mobilisation fraud.
Also joined as respondents in the suit Director General of
NYSC, Sidmach Technologies Ltd, Minister for Youths and Sports, and the
Attorney General of the Federation.
CAIFAL in the suit is praying the court to declare that by
virtue of the provisions of the NYSC Act 1993, the first to third respondents,
have no statutory rights, to demand a pre-mobilisation fee from prospective
corps members.
In an affidavit deposed to by one Mr Mike Ogie, in support
of the suit, the group averred that sometime in 2014, the NYSC introduced an
electronic registration programme, where prospective corps members were
required to register online with the sum of N3,000 as precedents for
mobilisation.
It added that the NYSC entered into a memorandum of understanding
with a company, Sidmach Technologies, to collect the fees on behalf of the
NYSC, through the issuance of scratch cards to prospective corps members and under
the memorandum, 70 percent of the money collected, would be ceded to the company
(Sidmachy), while the balance of 30 percent was reserved for the NYSC.
It added that the company had since 2014, collected over
N1.3 billion on behalf of the NYSC, without remitting any of its proceeds to
the Scheme or the Federation Account.
He averred that the applicant had petitioned the office of
the Minister of Youths and Sports, but that the perpetration of the act has not
been "called in," adding that
the first, second and third respondents, went into the aforesaid memorandum of
understanding, without recourse to the relevant sections of the NYSC Act and
the 1999 Constitution.
The group stated that the acts of the first to third
respondents, contradicts the true intent of the NYSC Act, which makes it
mandatory for prospective corps members to be compulsorily mobilised for
service of their fatherland, as the Act establishing the NYSC scheme, does not
provide for the payment of any fee, as condition precedent for mobilisation
corps members.
The group is therefore, asking the court to declare that
both the previous collection, and continued collection of the monies from
prospective corps members, is illegal, wrongful and most improper.
It is also asking the court to order the first and second
respondents to immediately render account of all monies so far realised from
corps members since the inception of its collection in 2014.
The group also want the court to restrain the NYSC from
further collecting any money from prospective corps members, as a pre-mobilisation
or re-deployment fee.
It also wants the court to direct the first and second
respondents to release or make public, the memorandum of understanding executed
between them and the company.
No date has yet been fixed for hearing.
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