Human Rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, on Sunday, knocked the Management of the National Youth Service Corps over the decision to withhold the Discharge Certificate of a Lagos youth corps member, Ushie Uguamayei, popularly known as Raye, in alleged retaliation for her criticism of the economic policies of the Bola Tinubu administration.
Falana, in a statement, said the decision is a cheap demonstration of overzealousness. The seizure of the NYSC Discharge Certificate is illegal as it was not authorised by any competent court.
âIndeed, it is a sad reminder of the confiscation of the NYSC Discharge Certificate of Bamidele Aturu (of blessed memory) in 1988 by the NYSC Management for rejecting the best Corper Award on the ground that he did not want to shake hands with the military Governor of Niger State, Lt. Col. Â Lawan Gwadabe. That was under the Ibrahim Babangida military junta when human rights were put in abeyance.
âSince Nigeria is under a democratic government, Rita Uguamayeiâs fundamental right to criticise the government is guaranteed by Section 39 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999. It is pertinent to remind the NYSC Authorities of the Democracy Day Speech of  President Bola Tinubu, wherein public officers were cautioned against suppressing dissent and that silencing critical voices could lead to unrest and undermine democracy.
âThe President declared, âWhile slander and libel must not go unaddressed, no one should suffer injustice for simply writing a negative report about me or calling me. In line with the commitment of the President to encourage Nigerians to criticise the government, the Management of the National Youth Service Corps should release the NYSC Discharge Certificate of Rita Uguamaye without any further delay.â
Raye became an Internet sensation following her public criticism of the present administration, which she described as worsening economic conditions.
Uguamaye had, in a viral video shared on her TikTok account, @talktoraye, expressed frustration over Nigeriaâs worsening economic conditions, lamenting the high inflation and economic hardship.
Uguamaye had also criticised the President by describing him as a âterrible leaderâ while questioning the governmentâs efforts to alleviate the hardship faced by the citizens.
