The Nation Newspaper

Tag: NYSC

  • Elections: Igbo flee North

    Elections: Igbo flee North

    Despite pleas by Igbo leaders and Ohanaeze Ndigbo, to the Igbo  in other parts of the country, especially in the North, to vote where they live, some have relocated to the Southeast.

    Yesterday, hundreds of women and children in the North returned to Owerri, the Imo State capital, following fears of post-election violence.

    Some of the returnees, who were seen at the ABC terminus, said they would stay until after the elections before returning to the North, adding that they abandoned their businesses for fear of crisis.

    One of the returnees from Kano State, Mrs. Mary Ikeagwuna, a widow and a mother of three, said she returned with her children, following her experience in 2011 when the Igbo were killed.

    She said more people would return to their states, especially women and children, adding that tension was mounting ahead of the elections.

    Mrs. Ikeagwuna said she registered her children in schools in Owerri before returning, to ensure their studies were not disrupted. Her words: “I don’t know what will happen after the elections. I thought it wise to return with my children. I’m a widow, they are all I have.”

    Mr. John Odinachi, another returnee from Kano, said: “The country may disintegrate after the elections.

    “The northerners are known for killing innocent people at the slightest provocation. I advise the Igbo in the North to return to the East and go back to their base after the elections.”

    A returnee from Borno State, who simply identified himself as Nwabueze, advised Ndigbo in the North to return to their states, adding that some of those who refused to flee at the peak of the Boko Haram insurgency were killed.

    Nwabueze, who also recalled the killings of members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Bauchi State during the 2011 elections, urged the evacuation of corps members in the North, to avoid a recurrence.

  • Election: NYSC warns corps members against misconduct

    Election: NYSC warns corps members against misconduct

    THE Director General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brigadier-General Johnson Olawumi, has warned the corps members participating in the conduct of the February elections against misconduct.

    He spoke in Abuja during a parley with the leadership of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) led by Prof. Attahiru Jega.

    Brig.-Gen. Olawunmi warned that any corps member, who is involved in electoral fraud should be prepared to face the consequence.

    He said: “I must emphasise here that although the arrangement this year is quite different from what has been happening in the past.

    “Corp members were asked to register online now. With that arrangement, one can technically say that the scheme might not be held responsible fully for whatever they do in terms of their conduct.”

    The essence of the warning, according to NYSC boss, was to remind the corps members that they were of age and so, the need to remind them that all of them are above 18 years of age” and hence old enough “to take responsibility for the consequences of any action they take during the election.”

    Olawumi, however, added: “But, we cannot close our eyes because they are working for INEC, as any misconduct will rub off on the scheme.”

    He noted that the scheme would not abandon the corps members while carrying out the national assignment, explaining that the scheme has worked out what it believed would assist them in carrying out the duties on hindered.

    Brig.-Gen. Olawumi announced that the scheme has set up Elections’ Security Committee to ensure smooth participation of the corps members in the conduct of the election.

    The committee with representatives from the army and other security agencies, he explained, had already reviewed the participation of the scheme in the previous elections and has come out with far-reaching recommendations which have been forwarded to INEC.

    He also appealed to the  INEC Chairman to educate the commission’s official at the state and local government levels to extend the kind of good working relationship being enjoyed between the NYSC and INEC at the national level to the corps members being posted to the areas to enhance their assignments

    In his remark, the INEC Chairman assured that the commission would provide adequate security for the corps members to avoid the repeat of the 2011 ugly incidence when some corps members lost their lives during the post elections’ violence.

    Jega also noted that the commission would do its best to minimise the challenges being faced by the corps members, especially in the areas of welfare and security, during elections.

    He promised that the commission would look into the request of the NYSC on the smooth participation of the corps members in the elections, saying that their participation in the nation’s electoral processes since 2011 general elections had improved conducts and outcome of elections in the country.

  • N240m cassava stems coming to 500,000 farmers

    N240m cassava stems coming to 500,000 farmers

    OVER 500,000 farmers will benefit from the distribution of stems valued at N240 million for multiplication across the country, HarvestPlus Country Manager, Paul IIona has said.

    Speaking during a Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) training to sensitise members of National Youth Service Corps’ (NYSC) in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, he said the Healthplus team arrived at the decision out of the need to promote and adopt Vitamin A bio-fortified staple crops, and delivery to Nigerians especially the rural poor.

    According to him, this will be achieved through intensified effort to reach out to as many Nigerians as possible by engaging young school leavers with a view to making them partners through sustainable agricultural entrepreneurship.

    He noted that the number of farmers that will receive the stem increased from over 450,000 who received Vitamin A Cassava stems from HarvestPlus last year to 500,000 this year as a result of the need to showcase the opportunities in Vitamin A Cassava value chain, which will help people to attain their potential, generate income and employ others.

    He added that HarvestPlus is committed to fighting hunger manifested through micronutrient deficiencies in foods by deploying bio-fortified staple crops and foods to the vulnerable population across the country and urged the corps members to partner with the organisation to achieve this noble objective. Areas of active entrepreneurial engagement that the corps members can invest in include: Vitamin A cassava stem multiplication; tuberous root production; service provision; and establishment of point of sale (PoS) outlets in strategic locations, among others.

    He said: “Last year, over 450,000 farmers received Vitamin A Cassava stems from HarvestPlus. This year, over 500,000 farmers will get stems for multiplication across the country and this comes in a value range of about N240 million.”

    To ensure that more people have access to the product made from the stem, more PoS will be opened across the country.

    “Last year, we opened a PoS to demonstrate to our partners that there is market for their Vitamin A cassava products. This year, HarvestPlus intends to work with partners from the nooks and crannies of Nigeria to establish 300 more points of sale. An online sales portal to connect the points of sale is nearing completion with huge benefits for those who come on board now,” Ilona further said.

    He also said while the company has embarked on training of new corners, HarvestPlus will train willing partners and provide technical support to ensure their successful take-off.

  • Re: 365 days of NYSC’s directionless leadership

    The attention of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) management has been drawn to an article titled: “365 days of NYSC’s directionless leadership” written by one Oluwaseyi Babaeko and published on page 35 of The Nation of Thursday, January 15, 2015.

    The writer in his somewhat self-delusional piece, among other things, accused the NYSC management of making discriminatory deployment of Corps members in favour of graduates from well-to-do families with children of the poor posted to rural areas and volatile regions. He also claimed that it had to take public condemnation before the Director-General (DG) could reverse the posting of Corps members to risk-prone areas. The writer also accused the NYSC management of not visiting families of some deceased Corps members or giving compensation to bereaved families.

    Of particular note is the claim by Babaeko, who had an accident while going to camp as a prospective Corps member, that he is yet to raise money for hip replacement while also alleging that the DG had not deemed it fit to attend to his case and that of other Corps members that need urgent medical attention.

    The management could have ordinarily ignored such write-up as an expression of ignorance and self-ridicule by the writer, except for the need to meet the expectations of those who genuinely seek the truth.

    First and foremost, it should be noted that Oluwaseyi Babaeko is a mischief maker and bare-fared liar, who has chosen, like in an interview granted in a previous publication, to stand fact on its head. We will address the issues as raised by him.

    The allegation of discriminatory deployment is laughable as postings are carried out electronically, and our system has default setting that enables random posting of prospective Corps members outside their states of origin. It should be noted that concessional postings are granted only to married women, who wish to serve in their spouses’ states of residence and others with proven cases of life-threatening illnesses.

    A major requirement for issuance of certificate of NYSC, among other things, is the Corps member’s presence in his place of primary assignment throughout the service year. We have records of disciplinary actions taken against Corps members who were absent from service locations for certain periods or absconded outright. We challenge the writer to name any absconded Corps member who was given certificate without repeating the service.

    On posting to risk-prone areas, the NYSC management has never had cause to reverse decision to post Corps members to such areas in response to the so-called public condemnation as claimed by Babaeko. We have repeatedly made our policy clear on this issue; Corps members are posted to all states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), including the crisis areas, in fulfilment of the provisions of the NYSC Act. But Orientation course for those posted to the crisis areas are conducted in safe states, while only Corps members who personally elect to go and serve in those areas eventually report there for the service. Majority of the Corps members are often relocated to safer states while those who choose to serve in the crisis areas are mostly indigenes of the affected states, including married women whose spouses reside there.

    Contrary to the mischievous claim by the writer, the NYSC Scheme has established procedures for responding to death of Corps members. These include delegation of officials to inform and condole with the bereaved families, conveyance of corpses, payment for burial expenses, official representation at funerals, and payment of death benefits to the next-of-kin of the deceased Corps members. These are statutory steps which the Scheme has continued to take in the unfortunate incidences of death of Corps members. Besides, the loss of Corps members, or any persons for that matter, should be seen as matter that requires to be handled with soberness and not to be made subject of mischief-making by some rascally person.

    The allegation of not attending to the cases of Corps members who need urgent medical attention is also another irresponsible lie by Babaeko, who is himself a beneficiary of the Scheme’s discharge of its obligation in that regard. Agents of distraction like him need to be reminded of how several newspapers were awash with commendations of the Director-General Brigadier-General Johnson Olawumi’s show of care and love when he visited a prospective Corps member of the 2014 Batch ‘C’ Oluwagbenga Babatunde at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital following the latter’s involvement in a road accident while on his way to the Orientation Camp in Bayelsa State. Aside from commiserating with the accident victim, Brig-Gen. Olawumi also directed the payment of his medical bills. He further granted his relocation so as to enhance his recuperation. If the DG could show such concern for a person who had not yet been registered and confirmed as bonafide Corps member, only mischievous minds would doubt his readiness to show similar concern for those that are already serving.

    Coming to the case of Babaeko himself, we recall that he was involved in a road traffic accident while on his way to the NYSC orientation Camp in Sokoto State as a prospective Corps member of the 2012 Batch ‘B’. Contrary to his claim of insensitivity, the first step taken by the Scheme was to move him from a hospital in Kebbi State to the more equipped Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto in order to avail him of the best care available in the circumstance.

    Another step taken was to relocate him to Lagos State after due consultation with him on the location of his next-of-kin. This was based on the belief that receiving treatment in an environment where his parents and relations would be within reach would yield some therapeutic benefits.

    Babaeko’s hypocrisy is glaring from his deafening silence about the settlement of his medical bills by the NYSC Management. To cut the story short, following the submission of his bills, the N645,540:00 was paid into his Union Bank’s Account No: 0038523282. Specifically, the said amount was credited into his account at 17:47hrs on the September 17, 2013. Though we have sufficient evidence of the transaction, we also challenge the writer to present his bank statement for that period for verification.

    From the foregoing, one wonders what Babaeko seeks to achieve by writing such misleading, mischievous and frivolous essay. The Director-General has, since assumption of office, remained focused on the pursuit of his vision and agenda for the Scheme and we are proud to report that much has been achieved by this passionate goal-getter. In particular, the issue of Corps members welfare remains top on the management’s priority at all times. The DG, the management and entire staff will not be distracted from the on-going efforts to take the Scheme to greater heights.

    •Management

  • Security operatives meet on elections

    Security operatives in Anambra State, including para-military outfits, met yesterday in Awka to deliberate on violence-free elections.

    The meeting, held at Barnhill Hotels, Awka, was organised by Police Commissioner Hosea Karma. The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) was in attendance.

    Also at the meeting were the Navy, Department of State Security (DSS), National Orientation Agency (NOA), the military, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Customs, Immigration, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and others.

    Candidates and party leaders were at the parley.

    Karma said the command would arrest anybody who violated the law.

    He assured that security operatives would be impartial and professional.

    His words: “The Nigeria Police and other security agencies are determined to ensure that there is no breakdown of law and order before, during and after the elections.

    “We have put in place measures and strategies to ensure security.

    “Let us make Nigeria great by preaching peace, shunning violence and acts that can breed violence.”

    The state Director of DSS, Mr. Alex Okeiyi, warned parties to desist from destroying the opposition’s billboards, saying anybody caught would be punished.

    He said his office had discovered that harassment and intimidation of non- indigenes were on the rise. Okeiyi urged parties to engage in issue-based campaigns, instead of blackmail.

    “You should leave out our students in this act. Anambra is a unique state, but the problem here is impunity. We want to change the face of elections in this state.”

    The Director of NYSC, Mrs. Robinca Isioma Odigwe, warned politicians not to engage corps members in shady activities during the elections.

    She said: “Our concern is the safety of corps members. We have advised them to be careful during the elections.”

  • 365 days of NYSC’s directionless leadership

    It was George Orwell, who said: “In the time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” Orwell submission motivated this piece, which is aimed at condemning, in strong terms, the clueless leadership style of Brigadier-General Johnson Olawuni, the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Director-General.

    The assessment of his 365 days in office is germane and necessary at this time owing to his anti-people’s policy and abuse of human rights.

    It was exactly a year on December 23, 2014, that the NYSC DG was appointed after the unceremonious removal of Brigadier-General Okorie Affia.

    Having taken a thorough assessment of his one year in office, I have come to the conclusion that his one year in office can best be described as a waste of time and resources. In fact, the Olawuni-led adminstration is the worst since the establishment of the noble scheme.

    Under Olawuni, graduates from well-to-do families are posted to cities and state capitals while the children of the poor are pushed to rural areas and volatile regions.

    In some cases, the children of the opulent do not even serve at all, they simply return to their base to enrol for some Masters programme or kick start their chase for PhD.  When all is said and done, they take the next available flight to the country only to collect their NYSC discharge certificates.

    NYSC received wide public condemnation before the DG could reverse his decision to post corps members to risk-prone regions like Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and a host of others under the siege of Boko Haram. Does General Olawuni need to be told not to deploy corps members to such states, where their safety can’t be guaranteed? His action before the reversal is an indication that common sense is not common.

    The recent mobilisation fee introduced by General Olawuni is a misplaced priority and an indication that the DG is not sensitive to the plight of the poor masses. Under his administration, some corps members have died while serving Nigeria without any record of the DG visiting their respective families or a modicum of compensation for the bereaved.

    For instance, in Kwara State, a youth corps member was killed by a reckless tanker driver few days to his Passing Out Parade (POP) and nothing has been heard about it. In Cross River State, another corps member was killed by suspected cultists but the rest is now history. Meanwhile, in Zamfara, a young corps member was killed and his car taken away, but all what General Olawuni could do was to misrepresent the facts by deceiving the public that the young man died after a brief illness even though the machetes cuts on his body were visible for all to see.

    We can go on and on but that’s how pathetic the situation is. Yours sincerely was not spared of the NYSC excesses.  I was posted to Sokoto State but on my way to resume camp, I was robbed in Kebbi State by some Fulani men who attacked our vehicle. Consequently, the attack led to a ghastly motor accident that cost me my hip. Till date, I am yet to raise money to effect a hip replacement.

    And as I write this piece, General Olawuni has not deemed it expedient to attend to my case and that of several other helpless corps members in critical situations that require urgent medical attention.

    With all the above-mentioned inefficiencies, it is obvious that General Olawuni is incompetent. His inept discharge of duties has revealed the reasons why he shouldn’t be entrusted with a sensitive position of a DG, especially at a time like this when the general elections are here.

    I therefore plead with President Goodluck Jonathan to unseat General Olawuni now and replace him with a more competent hand that can provide adequate security for corps members before, during and after the 2015 general elections to avoid the recurrent killing of corps members.

    Above all, I am using this medium to appeal to President Goodluck Jonathan, the international community, human rights and civil society organisations to ensure that my case and those of others are given urgent attention.

    In conclusion, the human rights organisations should charge both Brigadier Okorie Affia and General Olawuni for human rights abuses and violations.

     

    •Oluwasheyi is a Master’s student of Conflict, Development and Security, School of Politics, University of Leeds, UK

     

  • Eagles pound NYSC 5-2, Amokachi unimpressed

    Eagles pound NYSC 5-2, Amokachi unimpressed

    Expectedly,  the Super Eagles first warm up game since  the team opened camping on December 30 last year ended in a 5-2 victory for the national side against the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) with the FCT State League side showing a lot of grit and fluency against the Eagles.

    The NYSC side actually drew first blood in only the second minute of the match when  Omefe Ifeanyi slotted home from close range.

    The goal jolted the national team to reality and four minutes later hotshot, Mfom Udoh equalised after Gambo Mohammed’s beautiful run from the right fell to him. But the NYSC team will not let go, as they again took the lead through Eugene Utom in the 6th minute after another defensive mix-up that forced Coach Dan Amokachi to pull out experienced defender, Azubuike Egwuekwe, who was apparently the culprit of the gaps noticed in the backline.

    The Super Eagles seemed to wake up after the change with Nelson Ogbonna curtailing the excesses of the NYSC strikers, while teen sensation, Kingsley Sokari alias Bobby equalised in the 18th minute with a neatly struck goal. Sokari added his second of the day in the 21st minute after a neat interchange of passes with in form Heartland of Owerri winger, Stanley Dimgba.

    Two minutes to the end of the first half, Mfom Udoh got also his second of the morning, after Gambo had done the hard part of the job. The first half thus ended 4-2.

    In the second half, Amokachi introduced Bright Esieme, Christian Obiozor, Emem Eduok, Gbolahan Salami and goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim, who took over from Daniel Akpeyi. They pressed for more goals but were a bit wasteful in front of goal. But Eduok will not allow the half to be dry as one his fine runs which caused trouble for the NYSC side was finally converted by Christian Osas Ighodalo, for the fifth and last goal of the match. This was in the 85th minute.

    Speaking after the match, Amokachi said he was not impressed by the performance of his wards as they showed signs of heaviness, adding that more work needed to be done before the team travels later this week. “If you concede such an early goal against an experienced side like Cote D’ Ivoire you will be in trouble because you will have to chase the game all day”, he said.

    On his part, NYSC gaffer, Rotimi Salau, said one match was not enough to judge the national team but noted that the team needed to improve on its tactical and technical abilities. He, however, said with the quality of players he saw in the game, the current home based national side has a bright future.

  • CIIN targets NYSC members

    CIIN targets NYSC members

    The Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) has set out plans to attract members of the National Youth Service Corps into taking its examinations to achieve the target of raising 5000 professionals.

    CIIN’s Director Education, Ayeni Ebun, who made this known said an initiative code-named NYSC-CIIN is one of the concepts designed to attract young people into taking the institute’s examinations.

    He added that initiative and others would help raise the number of professionals in the industry.

    He said: “There is a concept we called NYSC- CIIN initiative, which was designed to catch professionals young. Under the initiative, we hope to go to Iyanu Ipaja orientation camp of the NYSC in Lagos and the Sagamu NYSC camp in Ogun State to sell our products to the youth corp members.

    “We will organise a programme for them to educate them on insurance and they will be given certificates for attendance. We trust that by the time the youth corps members will be finishing with their services, we would have introduced them to insurance and would have some of them enrolled in our examinations.”

    He noted that the institute would also take the hunt to universities, adding that the drive to catch the young ones at the secondary schools level would also be intensified.

    “We are also undertaking student drive in some universities that offer insurance.  We called the concept Student Enrollment and Institute Promotion. We are to go to those universities to tell them the importance of insurance.”

    He added that they want them to know the importance of being an insurance professional, which is more important than just acquiring the degree in insurance.

  • Ex-NYSC director Omojokun dies at 79

    Ex-NYSC director Omojokun dies at 79

    The second Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Maj.-Gen. Solomon Kikiowo Omojokun (retd), is dead. He died on December 25.  He was 79.

    Gen. Omojokun attended Igbobi College, Lagos and obtained a double honours BSc (London) in Mathematics/Physics from the Nigerian College (now University of Ibadan) in 1958.

    He was a science teacher at Oyemekun Grammar School, Akure and was commissioned into the Nigerian Army in 1963.

    Gen. Omojokun served his country in various capacities. He taught at the Nigerian Military School, Zaria and the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna.

    The deceased served as the commandant, Nigeria Armed Forces Resettlement Centre, Oshodi (1970); second director- general, NYSC (1975-1979); commandant, Nigeria Army Education Corps (1979-1984); minister of Labour, Employment and Productivity in the Buhari regime in 1985, after which he retired.

    After retirement, he served as Nigeria’s ambassador to Cuba and Mexico (1987-1991).

    He lived a private life at his town, Ilara Mokin in Ondo State, before his death.  He is survived by his wife and children.  Funeral arrangements will be announced by the family.

     

  • NYSC to stop doctors without certificates

    NYSC to stop doctors without certificates

    GRADUATES of medicine, who are yet to complete their Housemanship and have not registered with the Nigerian Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) with evidence of Certificates, will no longer be mobilised for national youth service.

    Also, receipt of payment for registration will no longer be accepted in lieu of certificate of registration.

    This was contained in a 14-point resolution reached at the end of a pre-mobilisation workshop in Abuja with the theme: “Deepening the Credibility of NYSC Mobilisation Process through ICT.”

    The NYSC Director-General, Brig.-Gen. Johnson Olawumi, said to ease the problem associated with exclusion of graduates of affiliated institutions from mobilisation for service, parent institutions must carry along the affiliated institutions.

    He also advised them to ensure that names of the graduates are not expunged from Senate/Academic Board approved result lists submitted to the NYSC.

    Brig.-Gen. Olawumi added: “All matriculation numbers that were assigned to graduates, but found to be invalid, should be brought to the attention of the Registrar, Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) for verification.

    “To guard against the bottlenecks associated with the delivery of exemption certificates to corps producing institutions, the old system of delivering simultaneously the call-up letters and exemption certificates to corps producing institutions has been restored.”