The veteran music executive, Kenny Ogungbe, has successfully completed the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme at the age of 63. He took to his Instagram page on Thursday, October 12, to share photos of his Passing Out Parade (POP) with his followers.
Ogungbe, who is widely known for his role in shaping the Nigerian music industry through his Kennis Music label in the early 2000s, expressed his gratitude to God for the achievement. He wrote, “NYSC graduation/POP today. Lagos/12C graduation day. To God be the glory.”
The NYSC is a one-year mandatory service for Nigerian graduates who are below the age of 30. However, Ogungbe was able to enroll in the programme after obtaining a degree in Business Administration from Lead City University in Ibadan, Oyo State.
He joined the Batch C stream of the NYSC in November 2022 and served in Lagos State. He participated in various activities during his service year, such as community development projects, skills acquisition programmes and cultural festivals.
He also used his platform and influence to mentor and inspire young Nigerians who aspire to pursue a career in music and entertainment.
Ogungbe is regarded as one of the pioneers and icons of the Nigerian music industry. He co-founded Kennis Music with Dayo Adeneye in 1998 and signed some of the biggest names in Nigerian music, such as 2face Idibia, Sound Sultan, Tony Tetuila, Eedris Abdulkareem and Kenny Saint Brown.
He is also a radio and television personality, who hosts popular shows such as Prime Time Africa and Kennis Music Easter Fiesta. He is the founder and CEO of Kennis FM, a radio station that broadcasts across Nigeria.
However, Nigerians have reacted that Kenny Ogungbe has violated the NYSC act but some said he never broke any law and the law says that if you had graduated from any institution when you are below the age of 30 years you can never get the exception certificate.
@Samson Oluwapelumi, “He can observe his NYSC anytime or he’s eligible to serve as long as he graduated before clocking the age of 30”.
@Nas Billions, “Does this means that NYSC no longer have age limits for service??? Congratulations Sir Kenny…”
@Anigbo Iyke, “I thought their is an age bracket for this program, which is 30yrs. Nigeria my country
