It was a memorable day for outgoing 2018 Batch “B” Corps members in Anambra West Local Government Area of Anambra State when the management of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) stormed the area.
Over 63 of them deployed to carry out their one year national service in the riverine communities could not hold back their joy as they trouped out in their numbers to receive the team led by the State Coordinator, Mr. Kehinde Aremu.
Their excitement was not unexpected as such visits by the NYSC management team were rare in the area in view of the peculiarity of the terrain.
Among the corps members were four of them who were honoured with Chairman’s Award for distinguishing themselves during their service year.
The award recipients, Mr Sunday Anonime, Mr Iwuoha Ekemezie, Mr Omotunde Oluwafemi and Miss Grace Eze, were also presented with cash rewards.
Speaking during the occasion, the NYSC state Coordinator, Mr Kehinde Aremu, said he chose the council area to celebrate with the corps members owing to the peculiarity of the terrain.
He described Anambra West as a people in special need and promised that the NYSC would do what was within its reach to bridge the manpower deficiency gap.
He appreciated the council for the love and hospitality shown to the corps members, assuring them that their requests would be considered.
Commending the corps members for accepting to serve in the hard to reach riverine area to impact positively in the lives of the people, Aremu noted that such sacrifices hardly go unrewarded.
He said the NYSC would help to tell the story Anambra West to the world, while promising to work on their request.
The awardee corps members said the community lacked access to quality education, good healthcare and sanitation.
They said they apparently shouldered the education of the people of the council as they made up the bulk of teachers.
The only female awardee, Grace Eze, who was among those who declined being evacuated when crises erupted in the area, said she insisted on serving in the community due to the passion she had for the people.
She said she thought mathematics and physics in the school where she was posted to, saying she also organized tutorials for the students including on weekends.
“I also thought the locals how to prepare local okpa and abacha. I equally thought them cultural dances,” she added.
Eze called on the state government to address the myriad of challenges in the area as a way of checking their underdevelopment.
Earlier, Chairman of the Council, Mr Sylvester Okafor, appealed to the NYSC in the state to post more health specialists to the council to bridge the manpower gap in that sector.
The council boss said the local government did not have any functional health facility nor government doctors in the 21 health centres in the council and prayed the NYSC to help uplift the people of the area.
He said they also needed the service of pharmacists and laboratory scientists as there was no place where people can run simple laboratory tests for as little as malaria in the riverine area.
He said, “Your coming to this place is not just for the fun of it, you have seen the condition of the people here, this is our request and I hope it will be granted, please post more doctors to Anambra West, if we can get five we will be happy.
“We don’t have a laboratory here where we can even run a simple malaria test in this whole local government, but if we can have laboratory scientists, somebody can come from Ndiora, Oroma can come to Anam for the test.
“The only hospital we have is a missionary hospital in Mmiata, managed by the Holy Rosary Sisters with one doctor who works day and night, that is why are calling for these graduate doctors to help the people in Igala area, Mmiata and other hard to reach areas.
“The two we have now are leaving and by that we don’t have any again, so, please send us more doctors, we don’t need them to give us drugs, we need them to give us the manpower.”
Okafor promised good incentives for corps members who work in the council.
