Group Raises Alarm Over Continuous Political Attacks on Kalu

A petition against Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, has been denounced by the Igbo Mandate Movement Group, a civil society organization, as “frivolous, mischievous, and politically motivated.”

According to the group, the action is the most recent in a continuing campaign purportedly intended to damage the public image and political career of one of the most well-known politicians in the South-East.
The petition was sent to the National Youth Service Corps and the Legal Practitioners’ Disciplinary Committee and was written by Mr. John Aikpokpo-Martins, a former First Vice President of the Nigerian Bar Association. It asked for a review of documents pertaining to Kalu’s national service history and professional credentials.

“The petition follows a pattern of credential challenges that have followed Kalu at every stage of his rise,” the Igbo Mandate Movement Group said in a press statement signed by its National Coordinator, Igboeli Arinze Napoleon. When he was nominated as a Commissioner in Abia State, critics claimed he had never graduated from the University of Calabar. This was refuted when Kalu went on to get an LL.M. and a Ph.D. from the same university and gave its 50th Anniversary Convocation Lecture. When he ran for office to represent Bende Federal Constituency, it was initially claimed that he had completely avoided NYSC service. After this was refuted, the accusation changed to one that his NYSC certificate was a fake, which needed to be officially refuted with a letter from Brigadier General Y.D. Ahmed, the NYSC Director-General at the time. The group claimed that “the same forces of retrogression have returned with yet another iteration of the same discredited narrative.”

The group outlined Kalu’s 2010 service year facts in the present petition’s substance. He received his degree from the University of Calabar in 1998, but the Nigerian Law School, which at the time had just two campuses in Lagos and Abuja, was unable to quickly accommodate the large number of eligible graduates. Due to the ensuing backlog, many law graduates had to wait years to get admitted. In order to obtain additional certifications, Kalu traveled overseas during this time. After he returned to Nigeria and was mobilized for NYSC in 2010, he was assigned to the Chairman’s office in the Enugu North Local Government Area. He took part in all camp activities, became a Platoon Leader, and received the Citizenship and Leadership Award.

By a stunning coincidence, he received his long-awaited Law School acceptance at the same time, putting him at the Enugu Campus in Agbani, only thirty minutes from his NYSC position. He had to decide whether to defer admittance and wait an additional three to four years or to terminate his NYSC duty in violation of the NYSC Act. He decided to fulfill both duties at the same time. In order to fulfill his LGA responsibilities prior to attending Law School sessions, his principal assignment timetable was set up accordingly. In addition to exceeding the required 70% attendance threshold for Law School, he fulfilled all weekly and monthly NYSC clearance requirements and was one of only three students chosen to be a member of the research team of the esteemed Professor Ernest Ojukwu, the Director-General of the Nigerian Law School at the time.

The group maintained that any NYSC pronouncements opponents attempt to invoke are of a prospective character, stating what “shall not” be done in the future and cannot be applied retroactively to Kalu’s 2010 service. According to the statement, “laws are not retroactive in nature.”

“Such statements lack legal force and would not withstand examination in an affidavit taken under oath.” According to the group, a call to the bar is a professional qualification, and throughout their service year, corps members throughout Nigeria frequently obtain professional certificates in project management, management, cybersecurity, and accounting, all while possessing comprehensive NYSC expertise.

In addition to defending Kalu, the organization called for immediate policy changes in the statement. Thousands of Nigerian law graduates continue to have to wait years to be admitted to law school. The group contended that Kalu’s experience, both in 2010 and now, when it is being used against him, reveals a systemic flaw that necessitates a legislative solution. This response should guarantee that law graduates can enroll in the Law School on time and that legal profession corps members are not penalized for showing initiative and good faith in navigating a broken system.

“Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu deserves praise, not criticism,” the statement said.

The organization demanded that the NYSC and LPDC treat the petition with the disdain it merits.