A National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) witness has told the Federal High Court in Abuja that the service certificate linked to former Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, was not issued by the corps, citing four irregularities in the document.
An Assistant Director in the NYSC Department of Certification, Yusuf Jumare, disclosed this on Tuesday while testifying as the second prosecution witness in the alleged certificate forgery and money laundering case against Nnaji.
Jumare, who appeared before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, said an investigation conducted by his department following a request from the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) established that the certificate was fake.
The ICPC is prosecuting Nnaji in charge number FHC/ABJ/CR/389/2026 over allegations bordering on certificate forgery and money laundering.
Led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Jimoh Abdulmumuni (SAN), the witness identified four discrepancies in the certificate purportedly issued to the former minister.
He said the certificate number carried the prefix ‘A’, which was not introduced by the NYSC until 1990, despite the document indicating that it was issued in 1985.
Jumare also said the call-up number on the certificate contained four digits, ‘0137’, instead of the five digits used by the corps in 1985.
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The witness further faulted the duration of service stated on the document, explaining that it indicated 13 months instead of the statutory 12-month service period.
The fourth irregularity, according to him, was the designation of the official who purportedly signed the certificate.
He said the head of the NYSC was designated ‘Director’ at the time Nnaji allegedly completed his service, whereas the certificate was signed by an official identified as a ‘National General’.
The prosecution subsequently tendered correspondence between the ICPC and the NYSC concerning the disputed certificate.
The documents were admitted in evidence, although the defence reserved its objections to their admissibility, stating that it had not been served with copies.
Abdulmumuni told the court that he had only recently taken over the case and promised to make the documents available to the defence.
During cross-examination by Nnaji’s counsel, Bode Olanipekun (SAN), Jumare maintained that the certificate was not issued by the NYSC.
He explained that his department was responsible for keeping records of certificates issued by the corps, which are presented to corps members upon successful completion of their service year.
The witness also said call-up letters were transmitted to universities for collection by graduates, while the institutions were responsible for forwarding the names of eligible graduates to the NYSC for mobilisation.
However, under further questioning, Jumare admitted that he did not establish whether Nnaji had ever been issued a certificate by the corps.
The testimony comes barely a week after an ICPC investigator, SP Yakubu Ibrahim, told the same court that the NYSC and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), had disowned certificates attributed to the former minister.
Ibrahim had testified that UNN informed the commission that Nnaji did not meet the academic requirements for the award of a Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology and Biochemistry.
He also said the university confirmed that the degree certificate attributed to Nnaji was not issued by the institution.
The investigator further disclosed that the ICPC’s investigation showed that Nnaji received about N29.5m in salaries and allowances during his tenure as minister before his resignation.
The commission alleged that Nnaji presented forged academic and NYSC certificates to secure his appointment as minister in 2023 and subsequently received public funds through the appointment.
Nnaji, who resigned from President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet following the controversy over his academic credentials, is the Peoples Democratic Party candidate in the forthcoming Enugu State governorship election.
He was arraigned on a six-count charge bordering on alleged certificate forgery, money laundering and abuse of office, to which he pleaded not guilty.
Justice Abdulmalik adjourned the case until November 30 for continuation of the cross-examination of Jumare and January 29, 2027, for continuation of the trial.
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