In a significant ruling on Monday, Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja sided with Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, in a case against the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
The court awarded N5 million in damages against the NYSC for falsely alleging that the governor’s discharged certificate was fake.
The judgment emphasized that the NYSC and its Director General were guilty of misrepresentation of material facts. Justice Ekwo asserted that the certificate presented by Governor Mbah to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was valid and authentic, highlighting that the governor completed his service in 2003 after temporarily leaving for the Nigeria Law School.
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The court rebuked NYSC for not challenging the evidence of Mbah’s service and criticized the corps for failing to take legal action if they believed the governor had presented a forged certificate.
Earlier, on May 15, Justice Ekwo had restrained NYSC and its Director, Ibrahim Muhammad, from further publication disclaiming the governor’s certificate. This order followed an ex parte motion moved by Mbah’s counsel, Emeka Ozoani, SAN.
However, NYSC, in its preliminary objection, sought the dismissal of the suit, citing the plaintiff’s failure to appeal to the president as required by Section 20 of the National Youth Service Corps Act. NYSC argued that this appeal was a prerequisite for any legal action against them.
Governor Mbah, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), emerged victorious in the Enugu state governorship election held on March 18, as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
