What do you define crowd mentality as?? Some see it as a negative vice, others as a disease. However, the truth is that in topical issues of political or social public discourse, it is inevitable. People generally tend to go with the generally accepted point of view and from there make deductions based on that already narrowed point of view. Political and social strategists use crowd mentality as a vital tool for swaying public opinion outcome on a particular issue by presenting issues in whatever light they feel will result in a desired response that is generally attainable. I am not saying that people can't be logical - indeed a lot of people are, rather once there's an established public opinion on an issue, a lot of people tend to go with the flow or base their inference on this opinion. Then you see that the most important part of logical reason which is the absence of bias is removed.

A few weeks ago, news broke the Nigerian social media about the allegedly fake NYSC certificate presented by the Minister for finance Kemi Adeosun. Publications and compelling evidence points to the fact that the certificate she presented appeared to have been doctored and therefore fake. Up until this point, the Minister has not come out publicly to address this issue. Although debates have been on going, the general consensus was that if her certificate is indeed fake, she has to answer for it or if it isn't she has to prove it's genuiety.

The different points of view on this matter stem from the premise that she KNOWS the exact truth about her NYSC certificate and should be made to face the consequence as the law prescribes. To be honest, I know believed that she must know if she obtained her certificate from NYSC or from Oluwole.
My entire view point changed drastically this week by an experience I cannot forget in a hurry.


My Story
I have been pursuing a job position since the start of the year and have been scaling through different hurdles by God's grace that has been bringing me one step closer to the prize - A job that pays above 200k with a brand new car at entry level!!! In Nigeria, one would sell their body parts to make this happen. I had written tests and attended interviews and finally I was selected for spot. Then there was a glitch- HR was asking for the original of my WAEC certificate and mine is missing, I simply can't find it. I presented my statement of result, not accepted. The only option I had was to visit a WAEC office and ask for a confirmation of result to be sent to the institution I applied to. The fee was minimal 5k - It is worth it I was certain.

Quickly I rushed to one of the WAEC offices here I'm Lagos (I just moved here because of the job last month) and went straight to the officer in charge, he pointed at a notice that had all the requirements needed to apply for the confirmation to be sent to the institution.

Passport photos (√)
Two envelopes (√)
Sworn affidavit at the high court (√)
Attestation letter from my secondary school with my passport duly stamped and signed by the school (×)

My brothers and sisters, I almost ran mad. My school is 10 hours away. I explained, my school is far from Lagos, and it's a government school, it'll take 1 day to get there and another 2 days to get attested. Then I can't do the confirmation at the WAEC office there because only God knows how long it'll take the couriers to get it to the office. The option was to carry the attestation and by behind back to Lagos and dobitbhere so it'll take a shorter time to get to the head office. Give or take, I was looking at 6 working days at least and I had a Friday deadline ( This was Tuesday).
I was dejected and deep in though as I stepped out of the WAEC office. Just as I was about to be on my way I heard someone beckoning to me - I looked up and saw a lady rushing towards me with an umbrella ( It was raining). "Attestation?" she asked me, I replied in the affirmative but I explained what I needed and what I was told in the office. While I was doing this I gave in to the need to say "Nna eh" as is with Igbo's like me when explaining a difficult situation. She asked me "í bu onye Igbo?", I replied yes and then the dialogue switched to Igbo. She explained to me how it's better to process a new certificate instead of getting confirmation each time i need something to stand in for my original. Then she then went on tell me I didn't need an attestation from my school to get the confirmation done and I didn't need hastles of couriers to delay me too. All I needed was to know someone in the office that would process it with the other requirements I had.
Who do I know?? I said, I don't know anybody here and to this end she informed me that she had a contact in there that could do it for a fee of 2k. I was ecstatic. Forget morals or corruption, I needed this and I was going to get it. I quickly agreed and bought an access card, printed my result and attached my passports to it. Beforehand she had called a Mr. X in my presence and he asked technical questions like what year? Which exam? (May/Jun or Nov/Dec) e.t.c.

After all this was done, then came the first red flag;
She asked him to send 'his boy' to come get the documents, according to her we couldn't go in there so as to avoid suspicion. I ignored it. a dude came looking rough with a t shirt and joggers, it was obvious he didn't work there. It's like she read my mind and explained that he's the son of a food vendor within the premises that goes on errands like this for the man.

Second red flag; We went inside a cyber café (Owned by other Igbo people) to sit and wait. Everything was going on outside, an I was conveniently given reception inside. Again, I brushed it off.

Third red flag; I kept seeing that Mr. Xs boy hanging around the area, meeting with a few people. I felt, what's this guy that's supposed to be inside doing hanging around here

Intermittently, she would come and let me know that the man says he'll be done in so so minutes from now. (She had excused herself after spending about 20 mins hosting with me about the goings on in the WAEC office).

Then came the straw that broke the camel's back;
She came in at a point and asked for my date of birth. I was shocked, I mechanically wrote it down but I asked, "O wu na okwesiro I nwe ya"?(Isn't he supposed to have access to it??), to which she replied that he doesn't because he's not the one that has access to my result. That did it for me, instinctively, I knew what was going on. I came outside to see her handing the piece of paper to the same boy who instead of crossing into the WAEC office, went behind a building on that row. I was now sure, these individuals were using Photoshop to doctor a confirmation order for me. As I was already standing outside, I just turned and walked off. I went to a shop around there also owned by an Igbo guy I had met there earlier last week on another assignment and asked " Okwa ndi ahu noo ebe ahu n'aru asambodo WAEC"? (Shey those people around the WAEC office doctor certificates)? He told me that they doctor any document obtainable from WAEC.

So here I was about to pay 7k for what I thought was a speedy process to get an original confirmation without KNOWING it was a fake that was being made for me. I began to think of the implications, what if I had taken it, paid and presented it to the Hr? Then it'll turn out that I presented fake documents for recruitment.

This is not to justify anything, but to present a different point of view. I would just paint the picture and leave the rest to your judgement.

Kemi Adeosun returns to Nigeria and goes to NYSC to apply for exemption. She's told, according to the rules you have to perform the service because you graduated before you turned 30, no matter how old you are now. She explains this challenge to someone who tells her "Don't worry, I know a Mr.X at the national headquarters, he'll process the exemption for you. You'll just give him something for his troubles''

Interesting read this will be...

So you were intellegent enough to know the difference and refrain but some Kemi didn't.

Well ignorance of the law they say is never an excuse....!!!!

Absolute rubbsh...

Some goats are tryna make it look like kemi was deceived into forging a certificate whereas she did it intentionally.

Kemi forged her NYSC certificate and she's supposed to be in prison for that...but this is Nigeria where it is a crime to be law abiding...

Hofbrauhaus:
Absolute rubbsh...

Some goats are tryna make it look like kemi was deceived into forging a certificate whereas she did it intentionally.

Kemi forged her NYSC certificate and she's supposed to be in prison for that...but this is Nigeria where it is a crime to be law abiding...

You should also be in prison because you're very sure she knowingly forged it. Which means you were there and have not gone to the police which evidence. This in turn makes you an accessory to the crime. You're guilty too.

ObaOloye:

You should also be in prison because you're very sure she knowingly forged it. Which means you were there and have not gone to the police which evidence. This in turn makes you an accessory to the crime. You're guilty too.

See your smelly logic...Very smelly. Defenders of corruption and lawlessness...

if kemi had innocently collected a 'forged' nysc exemption letter, she should have been able to open up as soon as the revelation was made known to her & sue the hell out of nysc.

furthermore, based on the narratives, the NAss has been using it to blackmail her as far back as 2016, that's 2 years ago, & she has not refuted that allegation (in addition to the nysc one) which means she is fully aware that there is an issue with her exemption certificate.

she has also not answered why she released funds, supposedly illegally, to the NAss without pmb's say so.


the questions kemi & by extension pmb, have to answer as regards their interactions, is mounting up & rather than giving Nigerians the silent treatment, they need to provide answers, except they are no longer answerable to Nigerians...