The Department of State Services (DSS) has refuted claims made by the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) that Mbah falsified his NYSC certificate.
Dr. Peter Mbah who is the state’s incumbent governor ran under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 concluded general elections.
In a report submitted to the Enugu Election Petition Tribunal on Wednesday, the service also criticized the NYSC for conducting a hasty and shoddy investigation that led to the conclusion that Mbah’s NYSC discharge certificate was a forgery, claiming that certificates in Mbah’s series were discovered to have been issued to corps members in Lagos, in direct opposition to the NYSC’s assertion.
This occurred as the LP quickly refuted the report, claiming that it was unofficial and did not come from the DSS because it lacked the letterhead and stamps of the agency.
The DSS revealed that the NYSC had misplaced Mbah’s original file and opened a temporary one for him after he returned from law school to finish his NYSC in a Statement on Oath adopted by its representative, Mr. Yahaya Isa Mohammed, at the ongoing Enugu State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Enugu.
Mbah’s NYSC certificate was defended by Mohammed, the DSS Deputy Director for Operations and Strategic Department, who was called to testify.
The security agency started looking into the discharge certificate controversy in response to a petition from Dr. Mbah dated February 8, 2023, he added, noting that NYSC was also unable to determine to whom or which state or states of the federation 12 of its certificates, A808297 to A808308, were issued.
He continued by saying that the NYSC’s inability to maintain a reliable record-keeping system was the root of Mbah’s NYSC certificate issue.
Mohammed said in their findings, they discovered the following:
“Mbah served for six months and went to Law School and later completed his youth service
“We discovered that Peter brought application from Law School through the Lagos State NYSC office to national headquarters
“The correspondence has a reference number: and the letter was replied permitting him to go to law school. After his Law School, he reapplied through the same means for reinstatement to complete his service
“We discovered a temporary file was used for reference. That means his initial file could not be traced.
“NYSC provided the six-series certificate which was signed and collected by corps members and the eight series
“We discovered that the numbers are in series. But NYSC could not account for 12 certificates among which includes Mbah’s certificate”.
However, during cross examination, LP lead counsel, Chief Adegoke Awomolo (SAN), observed that the report presented by the DSS official did not come with the letterhead and stamps of the security agency as against the normal practice, and sought to know the reason from Mohammed, to which he responded that his signature sufficed.
Also, when asked why he did not come to the court with authorizing letter or directive by the Director General of the DSS, Mohammed, said he appeared in court because of the subpoena.
Furthermore, when the DSS official was asked why the report he presented did not have attached documents backing his statement, he also answered that they were in his office.
When he was asked if his investigation revealed that Mbah became the Chief of staff to the then governor of Enugu State, Chimaroke Nnamani between July 10, 2003 and November 2003, the same period he was supposed to be serving as corps member, Mohammed said no, adding that it was not within his purview to investigate that.
Earlier, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on Wednesday, failed to present any witness to defend the allegation by candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Chijioke Edeoga, that the 2023 governorship election that produced Peter Mbah as governor was manipulated.