The Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brigadier Gen. Suleiman Kazaure, on Tuesday lamented the state of oriental camps across the nation.
The DG spoke about the obsolete, dilapidated and grossly inadequate facilities at the camps in Calabar during the 2016 `Batch B’ Pre-orientation Workshop organised for stakeholders to plan for a successful orientation programme.
The DG said the Federal Government was providing funds for robust activities of the scheme in spite of the current financial challenges. “The NYSC scheme started with less than 2,700 corps members in 1973. Today, the scheme is now mobilising over 300,000 corps members annually. Presently, the facilities in most orientation camps are obsolete, dilapidated and grossly inadequate for the ever increasing corps population.”
“The panacea for this challenge is for all the three tiers of government to live up to its statutory roles in the operation of the scheme. As we commence this exercise, I urge all stakeholders, especially the traditional rulers, transport workers and security agencies to assist our prospective corps members safely to their places of posting and throughout the service year.’’ He said.
The Deputy Governor of Cross River State, Prof. Ivara Esu who was representing the Governor, Gov. Ben Ayade said the NYSC scheme was a platform to bring about the feeling of oneness and for national cohesion. Gov. Ayade through his Deputy also said he was pleased with the new curriculum of the NYSC which placed emphasis on skills development and cultural assimilation.
According to him, the state is diversifying its economy in the area of agriculture and he asked the NYSC management to post a large number of agriculture graduates to the state.
Gov. Ayade announced that the sum of N1million would be shared among the 14 best performing corps members in the 2015 Batch `B’ session in Cross River state.