Parents demand end to NYSC over corps members’ safety

The National President of the Parent-Teacher Association of Nigeria, Haruna Danjuma, has urged the Federal Government to scrap the National Youth Service Corps scheme if it cannot guarantee the safety of corps members across the country.

Danjuma made the call amid growing concerns over the security of corps members following repeated cases of kidnappings, killings and attacks in different parts of the country.

Speaking on Saturday, the PTA president said many parents were increasingly worried about the dangers young graduates face during the mandatory national service year.

“On behalf of parents, we are not happy with what is happening. It is painful to lose a child. It is not easy to train a child from birth until they complete university and then at NYSC the child gets kidnapped,” he said.

Danjuma noted that because participation in the scheme is compulsory for most graduates, the government has a responsibility to guarantee their safety.

“We have said it repeatedly that the government has the responsibility of ensuring the security and welfare of all Nigerians. Since they engaged these young graduates in the scheme, they must ensure the safety of our children,” he said.

He suggested that state governments and their security agencies should provide guarantees for the safety of corps members before they are deployed to their states.

“The Federal Government should ensure that governors and the security architecture of each state sign an undertaking guaranteeing the safety of corps members before they are deployed there,” he added.

Danjuma warned that if adequate protection could not be guaranteed, the programme should be discontinued.

“If you cannot protect the lives of these children, then scrap the NYSC because the value of the scheme is already defeated if the children are not safe,” he said.

Also reacting, the Executive Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, said the concerns raised by parents were legitimate and should not be ignored.

Sanusi criticised the management of the NYSC for allegedly leaving families to deal with kidnappers without adequate institutional support.

“The concerns of the parents are absolutely right. There is no way someone would train his child up to that level, send him to NYSC, only to end up paying ransom,” he said.

He stressed that even if the scheme would not be scrapped, stronger security measures must be introduced to prevent corps members from being deployed to areas with high security risks.

“The current security situation requires measures to ensure that nobody is posted to areas where there are security threats. NYSC should not shy away from its responsibilities and leave parents to struggle with payment of ransom,” he said.

Sanusi added that the scheme has a duty of care toward corps members throughout the one-year service period.

“They mobilised these young people, so their security and wellbeing should remain the responsibility of NYSC until the end of the programme,” he said.

The renewed calls followed the case of a corps member, Musa Abba, from Gusau in Zamfara State, who has reportedly remained in captivity since January 9.

Abba, a graduate of Plant Science and Biotechnology from Federal University Gusau, was abducted by bandits while travelling to Sokoto to resume his national service.

A video circulating online later showed the corps member being beaten by his abductors after his family reportedly failed to raise the ₦10 million ransom demanded for his release.

Reports indicated that his family held a burial ceremony for him on March 5 after losing hope of his survival.

However, the kidnappers later released another video showing him alive but in a weak condition.

The incident has renewed concerns about the safety of corps members across Nigeria.

In recent years, several corps members and prospective participants have been kidnapped, attacked or killed while travelling to orientation camps or serving in different states, raising fresh questions about the security arrangements surrounding the national service programme.