Sola Ojo, Kaduna
Following unrests in some of local government areas of Kaduna state and the need to protect lives and property of members of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), the organisation said on Wednesday that it has suspended posting Corps members to such areas.
It also said it had withdrawn all Corps members serving in Kajuru local government area of the state following the recent crisis at Kasuwan Magani.
He mentioned specifically Birnin-Gwari, Kajuru, and any other crisis areas.
NYSC Coordinator in the State, Dahunsi Mohammed, who stated this during an interactive session with Corps employers in Kaduna State said the organisation would not be posting Corps members to those areas until it is crystal clear that they are safe for young Nigerian graduates deployed to serve.
“We are sorry we did not post Corps members to places we know there is crisis,” he indicated.
“We stopped posting Corps members to Birnin-Gwari and we have also withdrawn all Corps members serving at Kasuwa Magani, where crisis recently broke out. This will continue until normalcy returns to these areas and other places where we have social unrest,” he said.
On the workshop of the NYSC/Corps Employers, with the theme ‘Tackling Emerging Challenges in Youth Corps Administration Through Greater NYSC/Stakeholders Participation’, the coordinator said, rejection of Corps members is an obstacle militating against achieving assigned and expected duties in achieving a defined goal.
He said Corps members spend the largest chuck of their service year with their employers, hence the need for employers to provide them with positive experiences.
“As long as postings are done without strict compliance with Corps employers request, the challenge of Corps rejection will persist.
He added that rejection of Corps members, underutilization and evasion of service can also lead to a dearth of graduates in specilised fields such as engineering, technology, medical sciences, ICT, etc.
“That can drive down the country’s developmental agenda. What obtains is a glut of graduates in the humanities and the arts which, in a country striving for technological development like Nigeria, barely needs,” he said.
“The effect of this is too many Corps graduates of arts and humanities are chasing fewer placements for primary assignment which automatically leads to rejection.”
He also mentioned the under-utilization of Corps members as a factor slowing down the level of development of the country, explaining that “for example if a Corps doctor, engineer, teacher or any other professional, finds himself posted to where there are no facilities to work with, invariably such a Corp member will be underutilized.”
Mohammed said the NYSC had devise strategies to counter those challenges by organising a forum where management and Corps employers share ideas on best practices to optimally utilise the skills of Corps members and to prevent sharp practices.
Earlier in his remarks, the Director General of the NYSC, Brig. Gen Suleiman Kazaure, who was represented by Hajia Aisha Mohammed, said the the Corps has the tradition of organiding round table discussions with stakeholders, especially with Corps employers, with the aim of strengthening mutual capacity for the effective engagement of Corps members.
“The Corps employers workshop is not only to appreciate the enduring partnership between the scheme and the employers, but to also identify challenges in Corps administration and proffer solutions,” he said.
“We have also been undertaking advocacies to ensure that states and local government provide lodges for Corps member so they settle down in good time.”
Also speaking, the Kaduna State Commissioner for Youth ,Sports and Culture Daniel Danauta thanked the NYSC for reviving the interactive session with the view of addressing the highlighted challenges.