For more than five decades, the scheme has provided one of the few structured opportunities for young Nigerians from different ethnic, religious, cultural and geographical backgrounds to meet, live, work and serve together
By Moruff O. Balogun, Esq.
The recent abduction of prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members on their way to orientation camps has, understandably, renewed public debate about the continued relevance and safety of the National Youth Service Corps. The concern is legitimate. No Nigerian should lose sight of the fact that young graduates who are called upon to serve their country must be protected by the same country they are being asked to serve.
However, while the security challenges confronting the NYSC are real and require urgent action, scrapping the scheme is not the solution. Indeed, doing so may amount to throwing away the baby with the bathwater.
The NYSC was established in 1973, in the aftermath of the Nigerian Civil War, as an instrument of national reconciliation, reconstruction and integration. Its founding philosophy was to encourage common ties among Nigerian youths and promote national unity. The objectives of the scheme expressly include fostering patriotism, discipline, self-reliance, national integration and a sense of common destiny among Nigerians.
More than five decades later, these objectives remain relevant.
NYSC: One of Nigeria’s Few Genuine Instruments of Integration
Nigeria is a country of enormous ethnic, religious, linguistic and cultural diversity. Diversity can be a strength, but where there is little opportunity for citizens to interact meaningfully across these differences, it can also breed suspicion and prejudice.
This is where NYSC has made an important contribution.
A young graduate from Lagos may be posted to Sokoto; another from Kano may find himself or herself in Enugu; a graduate from the South-East may serve in the North-Central; while someone from the North may spend a year working and living in the South.
For many participants, this is their first sustained opportunity to live among Nigerians from a completely different cultural environment.
During the orientation camp alone, young Nigerians from different parts of the country eat together, train together, sleep in the same environment, participate in drills, social activities and community-development initiatives, and confront the challenges of national service together.
The NYSC Act itself recognises this objective. It requires, as far as practicable, that corps members be deployed outside their states of origin and that groups be representative of Nigeria. It also seeks to expose young Nigerians to different ways of life and encourage religious tolerance.
This is not merely theory. Human relationships are built through proximity and shared experiences.
Friendships formed during NYSC have resulted in marriages, business partnerships, professional relationships and lifelong friendships between Nigerians from different parts of the country. Investment opportunities have also emerged from relationships established during national service. A corps member who discovers a business opportunity in another state may return years later as an investor, employer or entrepreneur.
If we scrap NYSC because insecurity has made national integration difficult, what other national institution will replace it?
The answer cannot simply be that Nigerians should remain within their ethnic or regional comfort zones until security improves
These are intangible benefits that cannot easily be captured in a government budget.
The Spirit of Patriotism
Another important contribution of NYSC is the cultivation of patriotism.
The orientation camp is deliberately structured to introduce young graduates to the values of discipline, service, responsibility and national consciousness. The NYSC pledge calls on members to pursue a united, peaceful and prosperous Nigeria and to regard fellow Nigerians as their brothers and sisters.
Of course, not every participant leaves camp transformed into a perfect patriot. That would be unrealistic. But national identity is built incrementally, through shared experiences.
At a time when ethnic and religious sentiments increasingly influence public discourse, Nigeria should be strengthening institutions that encourage young citizens to see themselves first as Nigerians.
Rather than asking whether NYSC is perfect, the more appropriate question is: What would Nigeria lose if NYSC disappeared?
I am yet to see another national institution that brings such a large and diverse segment of young Nigerians together on such a systematic basis.
Security Challenges Must Be Taken Seriously
That said, defending NYSC should not mean ignoring its weaknesses.
The security situation in parts of Nigeria has changed dramatically since the scheme was established. Kidnapping, terrorism, banditry and other forms of criminality have created genuine risks for corps members travelling to orientation camps and carrying out their primary assignments.
The recent abduction of prospective corps members travelling through Imo State is a painful reminder of this reality. Reports indicate that 20 prospective corps members were eventually rescued after seven days in captivity, following coordinated efforts by security agencies. They were subsequently taken for medical attention.
The incident should not be used as an argument for abandoning national service. Rather, it should be a wake-up call for government to fund, reform and secure the scheme more effectively.
The government deserves commendation for the efforts that contributed to the release of the abducted prospective corps members. The security agencies involved also deserve recognition for their intervention.
Most importantly, the parents and families of the rescued young Nigerians deserve our sympathy, congratulations and solidarity. For any parent, having a child abducted while travelling to serve the country is a nightmare. Their safe return is therefore a matter for collective relief and gratitude.
Regionalisation May Be a Temporary Solution
If the present security situation makes nationwide deployment too risky in certain circumstances, government should consider regionalisation of NYSC as an interim measure, rather than outright abolition.
Corps members could, subject to security assessments, be deployed primarily within relatively secure geographical regions while government works aggressively to restore normalcy and strengthen national security.
This should, however, be treated as a temporary emergency arrangement—not a permanent replacement for the national character of the scheme.
The ultimate objective should remain the restoration of a Nigeria in which a graduate can safely travel from one part of the country to another to serve his or her fatherland.
Regionalisation could also be accompanied by other reforms: improved intelligence gathering, secure transportation arrangements for corps members, better camp security, regular security assessments of deployment locations, emergency response mechanisms and stronger coordination between NYSC and the relevant security agencies.
No corps member should be deployed to a location that government itself considers too dangerous.
Reform NYSC, Don’t Destroy It
There are certainly legitimate criticisms of NYSC. Some deployments may not adequately utilise the skills of corps members. Some communities may not receive the full benefit of their service. Welfare and accommodation issues also deserve continuous attention.
But these are arguments for reform, not abolition.
The NYSC framework already contemplates the effective utilisation of corps members in areas of national need, skills development, self-reliance and economic contribution.
Government should therefore modernise the scheme to meet the realities of the twenty-first century. Skills acquisition, entrepreneurship, digital technology, healthcare, education, agriculture and community development should receive greater emphasis.
The Community Development Service component can also be strengthened so that every corps member leaves behind a measurable benefit in the community where he or she served.
Security Is Everybody’s Business
Ultimately, the debate about NYSC is also a debate about Nigeria itself.
If we scrap NYSC because insecurity has made national integration difficult, what other national institution will replace it?
The answer cannot simply be that Nigerians should remain within their ethnic or regional comfort zones until security improves. That approach could deepen the very divisions that national integration is intended to overcome.
Security is everybody’s business. Government has the primary responsibility to protect lives and property, but citizens, communities, traditional institutions and other stakeholders also have roles to play in providing information, supporting lawful security efforts and creating safer environments.
We must therefore confront insecurity while preserving the institutions that bind us together.
Conclusion
NYSC is not perfect. It should be reviewed, restructured, better funded and made significantly safer. Where security conditions are exceptionally dangerous, deployment arrangements should be adjusted, including temporary regionalisation where necessary.
But scrapping NYSC would be a grave mistake.
For more than five decades, the scheme has provided one of the few structured opportunities for young Nigerians from different ethnic, religious, cultural and geographical backgrounds to meet, live, work and serve together. It has created friendships, marriages, professional networks, business relationships and, perhaps most importantly, a practical understanding that Nigeria belongs to all of us.
The answer to the challenges facing NYSC is therefore not abolition. The answer is reform, security and renewal.
We should protect our young people while preserving the national ideals that NYSC represents.
Nigeria needs more bridges, not fewer.
NYSC should stay. Let us make it safer, stronger and better.
•Moruff O. Balogun,FIMC,CMC,CMS
Former Vice Chairman, Nigerian Bar Association, Ijebu Ode branch, Ogun State
•Opinions, positions or thoughts expressed here are personal and strictly those of the writer/author and do not represent the views of The Daily Crucible.
