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The August 2025 National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Passing Out Parade (POP) took an interesting turn when corps member Rita Uguamaye (Raye) ‘s service year was extended.
On March 14, 2025, Rita went viral after openly criticising the federal government under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
She expressed concerns about food inflation and other economic challenges, saying these issues had subjected Nigerians to hardship since the beginning of his administration. Her post attracted widespread attention and sparked heated conversations online.
Months later, on Aug. 9, 2025, Rita shared a 51-second video updating her Instagram followers about her experience as a Lagos-based corps member.
In the video, she revealed that Veronica Abela, the Local Government Inspector (LGI), refused to give her Certificate of National Service (CNS), despite completing her service year at Eti-Osa Local Government in Lagos State.
However, the NYSC denied these allegations on its official X account. The scheme explained that Rita’s certificate was withheld because she failed to attend the April 2025 biometric clearance, not because of her criticism of the administration.
The Nation reported a statement signed on Sunday in Abuja by NYSC’s Acting Director of Information and Public Relations, Caroline Embu. NYSC clarified that Rita is among 131 corps members whose certificates were withheld for disciplinary reasons.
“Specifically, Rita’s service year has been extended by two months for failing to attend the April 2025 biometrics clearance, a decision that aligns with the NYSC Bye-Laws,” read the statement.
The statement added that the action was a standard procedure and not unique to her case, and the principle of equal treatment was only applied in this case.
The comment section of Rita’s video was filled with mixed reactions. Some users, like Chinyereabia, claimed her certificate was withheld because she violated the NYSC Bye-Laws. She wrote, “Since you missed April biometric clearance, you have been extended for 2 months”.
Onyeoma_Balalazua, on the other hand, disagreed, arguing that missing clearance alone shouldn’t be enough to withhold her certificate. He wrote, “I missed 2 months of NYSC clearance but got my certificate.”
Meanwhile, Rita’s lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, petitioned the NYSC Director-General, describing the two-month extension of her service year as illegal and politically motivated. He said Rita was present for the April 2025 biometric clearance, but her Local Government Inspector (LGI) deliberately denied her the clearance. The petition revealed that the LGI allegedly seized her file, refused to mark her attendance, and later issued a false query.
The petition also claimed Rita spent over six hours at the venue and was pressured to rewrite her explanation to make it look like she missed the clearance. Despite telling the truth at the disciplinary panel, her testimony was ignored.
Inibehe accused NYSC officials of victimisation, abuse of office, and trampling on her constitutional rights to free expression and fair hearing. He demanded that her discharge certificate be released immediately, warning that failure to do so would lead to legal action and escalation to the Presidency.
This controversy prompted DUBAWA to write an explanation of the issues and what the bye-law says.
What does the NYSC Bye law say?
The NYSC Bye-Laws (Revised 2011) laid out rules guiding corps members’ activities during their service year. While the laws do not specifically mention “biometric clearance,” they classify monthly clearance as an official scheme activity and missing the activity without obtaining permission from the scheme’s officials carries consequences.
Section 3(c)(v) of the Bye-Laws (Period of Primary Assignment) states:
“Any member who leaves his duty station or absents himself from any official activity without the written consent of the State Coordinator shall be tried by the Corps Disciplinary Committee and, if found guilty, be liable to extension of service with half pay double the period of absence.”
This means that if a corps member misses an official activity, including the monthly biometric clearance, NYSC has the power to extend their service. The extension is usually calculated as double the period of the absence.
The 1993 edition similarly provides for extensions where a corps member is absent from official activities, including Community Development Service (CDS) activities. Findings revealed that the basis for service year extension tied to absence has existed since the scheme’s inauguration. However, previous corps members have shown that the sanction is not generally put into effect.
For example, this Instagram user, iam_celebobo, said, “I missed one month and they gave me my certificate. I was not paid for the one month.”
Similarly, another user, dripz_and_slicesng, said, “I actually missed one clearance and still got my certificate… No, I didn’t meet anyone for help.
DUBAWA emailed the NYSC inquiring about its bye-laws regarding monthly clearance and service extensions. However, as of the time of filing this report, we have not received a response.
We attempted to contact Eddy Megwa, the NYSC’s Public Relations Unit (PPRU) spokesperson, via phone, but the line was not accessible, so we visited the NYSC headquarters in Abuja. On arrival, we asked to see the Acting Director of Information and Public Relations, Caroline Embu, but were informed that she was out of town. We were then referred to the media team, which directed us to the Director of Legal. However, Chris Oga, the Director of Legal, explained that he could not comment on the matter without clearance from the Media Department.
When we returned to the Media Department, Mgbemena Chukwuemeka, Director of Media, told us that only the NYSC Director-General could speak on the issue. Unfortunately, the DG was unavailable as he was away on camp duties.
