Counsel to Ushie Raye Uguamaye, Justice Ojiemoh, has emphasised that a president, governor, or legislator cannot deny corps member the constitutional rights that have been guaranteed to both them and civil servants.
He made this known in an exclusive interview on News Central’s programme JASIRI on Tuesday, 18 March. Raye had alleged that she was threatened by an NYSC staff member who instructed her to take down a video where she expressed distress over the cost of living in Nigeria, stating, “The president is terrible.”
Raye, a young Nigerian, is undergoing the mandatory one-year national service—far from home—like many other university graduates. She receives an allowance of ₦33,000 from the government, an amount that has become increasingly inadequate in Nigeria’s struggling economy.
Expressing her frustration, Raye said:
“I genuinely feel so overwhelmed, and I feel like if a lot of Nigerians come out and start speaking on what we are actually going through, then maybe changes will be made in the government. Don’t you guys think? And this video, I just want to say to our president—I don’t know if there have been any other presidents that are terrible, but you are such a terrible president. It is so hard.”
The following day, Raye took to social media to inform the public that she had been threatened and asked to delete her post about the president and the state of the country. She said:
“I was only asking for accountability, ma, and you’re threatening me. She called me, and she was shouting and threatening me to take down the video. And my first thought was, wait, how did they get my phone number?”
The Corps Member also expressed concerns about her safety, given that the NYSC has access to corps members’ personal details. She said:
“I didn’t realise that every NYSC member has to fill a file with their phone number and address. I’m like, these people actually have my house address, they know where I’m staying, and now they’re calling me first to threaten me. It is so bad that you can’t even just speak up about the government.”
Raye’s counsel, Ojiemoh, raised concerns about constitutional conflicts that seem to deprive corps members and civil servants of their rights. He stated:
“When the president, governors, or legislators take the oath of office, one of the things they commit to is upholding the provisions of the constitution. So, if they are asking NYSC members or civil servants to abide by rules that conflict with constitutional rights, I believe they are wrong.”
He further added:
“To the extent that they are insisting on enforcing such regulations on civil servants, I believe those who swore to uphold the constitution are in violation. So, if the president is the one championing this, he is wrong—though I honestly do not believe he is behind it.”
