It’s been more than a week since @PremiumTimesng alleged that Kemi Adeosun forged her NYSC discharge certificate. I said it’ll take a while for NYSC to get to the bottom of the matter. Some people dragged me for saying so. They are now mute. Here’s what might be going on. Thread.
As usual, when issues come up in the public sector, private sector arrogance comes immediately to the fore. People alleged WRONGLY that NYSC had no database. Some tried to sell their wares, from Cloud Storage to Electronic Document Management Systems to Blockchains technology.
In each case, they were convinced that the public sector were blissfully ignorant of all these things. You just need to engage the private sector to do them and you can just run a “simple” search and tell immediately if any exemption certificate is genuine or not. Yeah, right!😂
You see, NYSC actually runs one of the most sophisticated databases there are. Recent Youth Corpers will tell you that everything from registration, to posting, to deployment are all done electronically. So, the idea that NYSC doesn’t have electronic records is preposterous.
Now, this is what I think is going on. This is based purely on conjecture, with no insider information or facts about the particular case. Please treat as fiction. When the story broke, DG NYSC would probably have been blissfully unaware, busy preparing to mobilise the next batch
Somebody would have called him, probably at home, to say “Oga, you need to come into the office immediately o.” He would have read the @PremiumTimesng allegations and called for an urgent meeting with his management team to try and fully understand the issues. Caution will reign.
Of course, the first thing the DG will request is ALL the information about the case, electronic AND physical. He will want to know:
1. Did she serve? When?
2. Did she apply for exemption? When?
3. Where is the application?
4. Who first treated the file? Then who? Then who?
1. Did she serve? When?
2. Did she apply for exemption? When?
3. Where is the application?
4. Who first treated the file? Then who? Then who?
5. Was the application approved or denied? By whom?
6. Was the decision communicated to the applicant? How?
7. Was an exemption certificate granted? Who approved and signed it?
8. Should it have been issued?
9. Do the electronic records match the records in the files?
10. More..
6. Was the decision communicated to the applicant? How?
7. Was an exemption certificate granted? Who approved and signed it?
8. Should it have been issued?
9. Do the electronic records match the records in the files?
10. More..
The DG will be daft to rely on electronic records only. The fact that even the govt IPPIS payroll system was compromised by the private sector people engaged to run it is enough reason not to place your entire hope on electronic systems alone. He will want to triangulate the info
He will also know that physical records in the files can also be compromised. Documents can be inserted, removed or replaced. It will be daft of him to rely solely on physical records too. Apart from records, he will also want to interview people that dealt with the case.
In the meantime, politicians close to the case will be trying to “reach out” to the DG. They will be rather circumspect about it. These guys are military guys. They will insult you if you don’t show them respect. They are also very mindful of precedence, legacy and history.
I do not actually believe that ANYBODY can put pressure on any DG NYSC to forge an exemption certificate for ANYBODY. They would rather quit. You may not believe me, and that would be absolutely fine. But I am entitled to my opinion, just like you are entitled to yours.
The DG will know that the career, and possibly liberty, of the Minister could depend on his findings. He would want to be ABSOLUTELY sure. If the exemption certificate was properly issued, he will make the announcement and provide the evidence. He won’t trade words with anybody.
If it was improperly issued or was forged, he and his Minister, the Minister of Youth & Sports, will ask to see Mr President. They will give him the news and leave. The DG will not talk to the Minister of Finance at all throughout the process. The Minister of Youth probably will.
As you can see, these cannot all happen within 24 hours. Some of the physical files may even be in storage offsite. Yes, they could have been scanned into an EDMS system but who will pay to do the scanning of millions of records when overheads continue to be relentlessly cut?
If you know the number of EDMS systems that donors have funded in government. The problem is always the manpower to scan millions of files, sometimes in hundreds of containers. Even high end scanners need people to work them. You also need people to decide what gets scanned.
We often suggest starting from recent records and gradually going backwards. That’s why you need to maintain both manual & electronic records. It can take 10 years of constant efforts to digitise all records. Until all processes are electronic, files also reveal previous actions
While the electronic record will tell you that there was an application and it was granted or denied, you are more likely to find all the to and fro that led to it in the file. If it was improperly issued, someone would have advised against it in the file and been overruled.
Some have assumed the exemption certificate was forged and have already started saying the Minister may not have known it was forged. That is neither here nor there. If it was forged, everything she has done to date is void ab initio. It would be a VERY serious matter.
If it wasn’t forged, the Minister’s silence has been rather unusual. Most people will say “I was properly exempted by NYSC and I have no doubt that they will confirm this shortly.” Not saying anything at all is quite odd. Anyway, I expect NYSC to speak this week. Patience! End!!
