A graduate of Nasarawa State University, Keffi Adamu Sunday, has been left in distress after being unable to enroll for the National Youth Service Corps due to an alleged administrative mix-up that saw his Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board registration number assigned to another student.
Sunday, who completed his Economics degree in 2024, now faces an uncertain future as he struggles to clear his name and secure his rightful place in the NYSC scheme—a requirement for many employment opportunities in Nigeria.
According to the PUNCH, Sunday expressed deep frustration, saying, “I am depressed knowing someone else has taken my place in NYSC. This person used my registration number to serve, probably earning a living with that certificate, while I am left stranded. What is the value of my degree if I cannot participate in NYSC? This is worse than not going to school at all.”
Sunday traced his ordeal back to when he first attempted to register for NYSC but repeatedly encountered errors.
Upon visiting the school in July 2024 for clarification, he was shocked to be told that, according to records, he had already completed NYSC in 2019—despite the fact that he had only resumed studies that year due to an academic strike.
Determined to set the record straight, Sunday took his case to JAMB’s zonal office in Abuja, where biometric verification confirmed that he was the rightful owner of the registration number.
Officials there advised him to return to NSUK to rectify the issue. However, his attempts to get the Student Affairs Division to act were met with delays and silence.
Even after escalating the matter to his Head of Department and the Vice-Chancellor’s office, Sunday found himself trapped in a cycle of bureaucratic runarounds.
At one point, he was told bluntly by a university official that even if the Vice-Chancellor intervened, the final decision rested with the Student Affairs Division.
Rather than address the mix-up, school officials allegedly pressured Sunday to undergo JAMB regularisation—a process typically meant for students with admission irregularities.
However, he rejected this option after receiving advice that it could render his admission and degree invalid.
“Some students had JAMB registration issues in 2019, and instead of properly resolving them, their details were swapped with others, allowing them to be mobilised for NYSC. I have become a victim of this injustice,” Sunday lamented.
After submitting complaints to JAMB and NYSC, Sunday received acknowledgment from both agencies, but progress has remained slow.
A staff member at NYSC later informed him that they had spoken with NSUK’s Student Affairs Division, instructing him to return there.
Despite NYSC’s intervention, Sunday alleges that school officials mocked him when he returned.
According to him, the Data Entry Officer, Idris Dahiru, told him, “Even if you report this case anywhere in the world, they will still refer you back to us.”
He was once again told to either accept JAMB regularisation or forget about NYSC. His attempts to meet with the Vice-Chancellor directly were unsuccessful.
Sunday, now battling depression, is calling on JAMB, NYSC, and the Federal Ministry of Education to intervene and rectify the injustice done to him.
“I should not be made to suffer for a mistake I did not make. This injustice must be corrected,” he pleaded.
Efforts to reach the university’s spokesperson, Abraham Ekpo, for a response were unsuccessful, as calls to his phone went unanswered, and he had not responded to messages at the time of filing this report.
