A coalition of civil society organisations has petitioned President Bola Tinubu, demanding the immediate suspension of the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, over alleged irregularities in his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate.

The groups, in a letter submitted to the Presidency on Tuesday, described the controversy as “a constitutional and ethical matter that strikes at the very heart of integrity, justice, and public accountability.”

Addressed to the President through his Chief of Staff and copied to the Chairman of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), the petition insisted that no government official should be shielded from scrutiny, especially on matters bordering on public trust.

According to the coalition, Tunji-Ojo was first mobilised for NYSC in 2006 at the age of 24 but allegedly failed to complete the one-year mandatory service. The NYSC, they claimed, later confirmed that he did not finish the programme.

Thirteen years later, in 2019, the minister was reportedly re-mobilised to complete his service. However, at that time, he was serving as a member of the House of Representatives, representing Akoko North-East/North-West Federal Constituency of Ondo State, a situation the petitioners said violated constitutional provisions against holding two public positions simultaneously.

The groups further alleged that although Tunji-Ojo supposedly concluded his service in 2020, no certificate was issued to him until 2023, when a new discharge certificate surfaced, purportedly signed by an NYSC Director-General who was not in office during the period in question.

While the NYSC reportedly explained that the minister’s name had been “omitted during printing,” the petitioners dismissed the claim as “suspicious, irregular, and inconsistent with established NYSC administrative procedures.”

Citing Sections 2 and 13 of the NYSC Act, the groups argued that absconding from service or possessing a forged certificate constitutes a criminal offence. They also referenced constitutional and anti-corruption provisions that prohibit public officers from earning salaries from more than one office, punishable under the ICPC Act by up to seven years’ imprisonment.

“If Tunji-Ojo indeed served as a federal lawmaker while participating in the NYSC scheme, it would amount to abuse of office, conflict of interest, and violation of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers,” the petition read.

The coalition accused the federal government of selective justice, recalling that a former minister from the South-East had been asked to resign over similar certificate-related controversies.

“Just as a minister from the eastern part of Nigeria was made to resign pending investigation over certificate irregularities, the same standard of accountability must apply to Minister Bunmi Tunji-Ojo,” the petition stated. “Justice must not wear ethnic or political colours.”

The groups demanded the minister’s immediate suspension to allow for an impartial investigation, as well as a directive to the NYSC, ICPC, and CCB to verify the authenticity of the 2023 certificate. They also urged the National Assembly to investigate any possible double remuneration between 2019 and 2020.

“This is not merely about Bunmi Tunji-Ojo, it is about whether the rule of law still governs our democracy,” the petitioners added. “The President must act decisively for history, for justice, and for Nigeria.”

The controversy comes months after former Minister of Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, resigned over alleged certificate forgery involving the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.