| NYSC: A service corps or service corpse? KAYODE KETEFE Last Friday, a new batch of Nigeria's tertiary institutions graduates tagged "Batch B" were issued call-up letters to embark on one-year mandatory national youth service which would take them to different locations across the length and breadth of 36 states. The states ominously included all the volatile states that are effectively under the siege of terrorism, viz, Borno, Yobe Kano, Kaduna, and continually harassed states like Plateau, Bauchi and Niger States. In the olden days, we used to humorously refer to the acronym, NYSC as "Now Your Suffering Continues" in apparent reference to the great sacrifice a corper is mandated to make under the scheme whereupon he/she would be posted outside his/her area of birth into a far unknown place; drilled mercilessly for three weeks in military-style regimental exercises, made to live on mere stipends throughout the year and yet expected to render meritorious service to their host communities. The current grim reality of intractable insecurity in the land, especially in many parts of northern Nigeria, has however made this "customary hardship" pale into utter insignificance, having been tragically overshadowed by the greater perils like violent deaths through bomb blasts, mob attack or gunmen's onslaught. During the last general elections, ten corpers were killed during post-elections riots alone, not to talk of many others killed in other diverse onslaughts across the northern landscape. Thus, in paronomastic reference to the headline of this piece, the service corps now seems turned into service corpses! It is perplexing that in spite of the acute insecurity, evinced by wanton mass killings and malevolent reprisals in many parts of the northern states, the authorities of the NYSC would even toy with the idea of sending defenceless youths to all the troubled areas. The recent postings to problematic states understandably generated furore as parents, guardians and the graduates themselves roundly condemned the apparent callousness of the NYSC to the grave dangers. Many parents have withdrawn their children from the service, vowing they would rather keep their adored ones at home than losing them in the quest for service to any "useless fatherland" In stout defence of the postings, the NYSC Director- General, Brig.-Gen. Nnamdi Okore-Affa, who insisted the postings would not be reviewed, said: "Nigeria has 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT. By our mandate, we must post corps members to all states." "However, because some areas have been described as volatile, what we will do is to reduce the number of corps member sent to such states. They will be posted to areas where their security will be guaranteed." Now, one may ask, if undeniable reality has made it necessary to reduce the number of corpers to volatile areas, why posting there at all? It is like saying we cannot afford to sacrifice many people, we can however experiment with some lives! There is nothing in the NYSC Act that prohibits occasional variation in posting procedure through executive policy. But the recent development is a reflection of our awkward, if not bizarre ways of doing things. If there is any laughter left in us, one would have laughed outright about Okore-Affa's talk on guaranteeing security – this at a time when the law enforcement agents themselves have become targets of terroristic attacks and could not guarantee their own security. What is more, the NYSC similarly boasted about security of corpers when it obstinately posted corps members to troubled areas during last general elections, and we all know how perfect the security was by the number of dead corpers we were counting in the aftermath. Ironically, very few of the children of the rich and influential ones would be affected by incongruous postings as these aristocrats would have thrown their weight to influence the postings, leaving the children of the underprivileged to vagaries of callous deployment. Well, the real point being made here is that nobody should have been posted to those areas. Pray, what are the collective values of the services these young graduates would render to their host states that the nation treasures so much even above their lives? Or can the so-called objective of national boding be realised in the atmosphere of fear and insecurity? We should be able to put issues in correct perspective as sentient beings instead of our seemingly intractable obstinate adherence to warped orthodoxy and inapt policies. To every reasonable mind, the rationale behind the scheme, which encompasses fostering national harmony, cultural integration and tolerance as well as inculcating virtue of discipline in the young graduates, now looks exceedingly puerile in the face of the prevailing realities. What violence would be done to overall credibility of the NYSC scheme if the government allows the graduates to do their service in their home states, or at most, regions, until the problem of insecurity becomes manageable? The posting policy must be reversed now to allow parents reap the rewards of their lifetime investments on their children and to preserve the lives of thousands of educated Nigerian youths that have suddenly become endangered species through their leaders' indiscretion. NYSC must recall all graduates posted to the "death zones" as their parents don't want to be compensated with N5million each for a tragedy that can be easily averted. | 
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