…attacks against Benjamin Kalu appears to stem more from political fear.
ABUJA, Nigeria — The iNews Times | Benjamin Kalu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, has become the focus of a fresh controversy as the Union of Igbo Youths (UIY) urged security agencies to investigate the alleged funding of protests and campaigns targeting him over his NYSC certificate and Nigerian Law School records.
The Union of Igbo Youths (UIY) described allegations raised by the Coalition of South East Youth Leaders (COSEYL) against the Deputy Speaker as fabricated and politically motivated.
In a statement signed by the group’s National President, Dr. Nicholas Nwigwe, and Vice President, Dr. Ada Okoronkwo, the UIY described COSEYL as a “group for hire” allegedly acting on behalf of unnamed political sponsors.
The group challenged COSEYL to produce credible evidence against Benjamin Kalu or tender an unreserved apology to the Deputy Speaker.
It also called on Igbo youth organisations, traditional institutions, the media and security agencies to reject the campaign, demand evidence from COSEYL and investigate the funding of protest activities targeting Benjamin Kalu.
“The NYSC conducted a formal and independent investigation into questions surrounding Kalu’s certificate and, at its conclusion, issued an official verification letter confirming that the Deputy Speaker obtained his certificate in full compliance with the NYSC Act.
“A senior NYSC director who participated in the process has since publicly reaffirmed that finding.
“We challenge COSEYL to produce a counter-verification document from the NYSC, a letter from the agency’s Director-General disputing the 2023 findings, or any sworn affidavit from a competent authority backing its claims.
“Because if you cannot, and we are absolutely certain you cannot, then COSEYL has done nothing less than defame a serving constitutional officer of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” the statement declared.
The UIY also addressed reports suggesting that elements behind the campaign were considering filing a petition against Benjamin Kalu at the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) over his Law School records.
It dismissed the possibility, insisting that the LPDC which it described as one of Nigeria’s most respected regulatory institutions, would not allow itself to become “an instrument of political harassment against a man whose records have already been verified clean.”
The group further called on the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association and senior legal practitioners to protect the integrity of the committee from what it described as partisan abuse.
According to the group, the intensity of the attacks against Benjamin Kalu appears to stem more from political fear than genuine concerns about accountability.
“We are issuing not just a statement but a warning that the era of deploying sponsored voices to undermine the South-East’s rising political figures must end,” the statement stressed.
While noting that Benjamin Kalu has neither declared for the Abia State governorship nor submitted any electoral expression of interest, the group argued that rival political interests may be moving against him because of his perceived potential.
“They are not fighting a declared candidate. They are fighting a potential. Kalu’s record of attracting federal attention and resources to the South-East and providing the region with a formidable voice at the national level makes him a threat to entrenched interests.
“An attack on Benjamin Kalu at this scale is not simply an attack on one man. It is an attack on the ambition of every Igbo person who dares to rise,” the statement added.
