From Okodili Ndidi, Abuja
A Civil Rights Advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has alleged plot to compromise the ongoing investigation of alleged forgery of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Discharge Certificate against the Managing Director of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Micheal Akabogu, by the Police following the reassignment of the case.
The Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) of the Nigerian Police reportedly took over the investigation from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command, after the embattled NSITF boss was invited for questioning which he failed to honour.
Akabogu was reportedly invited last week by the Utako Division of the FCT Police Command following a criminal complaint forwarded to the Commissioner of Police, FCT command, Sunday Babaji, against him.
It was reported that the Police wrote the NYSC to demand clarifications on the said Certificate and NYSC in its response with reference number: NYSC/CCD/VER/10/S.1/VOL/07 and signed by the Acting Director Corps Certification, Ibrahim A.M., disowned the Certificate being allegedly paraded by Akabogu.
Meanwhile, a civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has warned against shielding the NSTIF boss from investigation, demanding an independent probe by another non-biased agency or organization different from the police.
The group, in a petition signed by its National Mobilisation and Good Governance Officer, Miss Amina Mohammed and forwarded to the Senate on Tuesday, tasked the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan to also refer the matter to appropriate Committee and conduct a public hearing on the alleged forged certificate.
Miss Mohammed noted that the request for transparent investigation of the forgery allegation against the NSTIF boss, became necessary as a result of clandestine plans to compromise the investigation by vested interests within the Nigerian Police Force.
“Issues of alleged certificate forgery speak of desperation to acquire power and influence at all costs, which has affected the moral compass of the nation and questions its norms and values.
“Hence, we do not trust the Force headquarters to bring this investigation to an unbiased conclusion as issues have been known to be watered down, especially when coming from a Division to the Headquarters,” she said.
HURIWA, while decrying the spate of certificate forgery in the public service, observed that “the series of disturbing incidences of document forgery situations, which have shown an absolute flight of morality in the polity as a consequence of desperation to acquire power and influence at all costs.
“Since the return to democracy, Nigerians have seen a continuous deterioration of their political process into a criminal franchise of power grab for self-service at all costs and morality appears to have taken flight in everything we are doing in this country.
“Immorality pervades the entire country and that is why we are not even able to implement our laws. In fact, the executive is not able to execute any law nor is the judiciary able to interpret the law in line with the morality of the rule of law because the law was crafted to safeguard morality and so when a system is devoid of morality, it becomes dysfunctional.
“It is worrisome that in a country where public office holders are made to pass through several screening processes, one wonders how those parading forged certificates were not caught.
“Research has shown that the security operatives that conduct the screenings are often not aware of the fake certificates as they are given guidelines on what to check and how to check them – thus the need for an independent investigation into Akabogu’s issue,” she added.
