Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has called on the Federal Government not to scrap the National Youth Service Corps.
He said the recent incidents in some parts of the northern part of the country, which led to the death of some corps members, did not mean that the scheme was no longer useful.
Rather, he said that the programme, which was instituted in 1973, was due for review to reenergise it towards the attainment of its set objectives of national cohesion, integration, unity and stability.
Abubakar was said to have made this remarks in Yola, Adamawa State on Sunday during the graduation ceremony of the American University of Nigeria and the release of 400 prospective corps members expected to join their colleagues from all parts of the country for the next NYSC one-year scheme.
According to a statement from his media office, Abubakar was said to have flayed calls in some quarters to abolish the programme, maintaining that despite the unfortunate and regrettable death of about 10 corps members in the recent post-election violence, the benefits of the unification programme were by far greater than its perceived shortcomings.
He said that since the introduction of the NYSC programme in 1973, the scheme had enabled the nation’s young men and women to appreciate the ethnic and cultural diversity of the country.
This, he added, had further held to cement the unity among the several ethnics in the country.
He said, “Prejudice imprisons an“No right-thinking person should recommend the abolition of the programme because of the misguided actions of political thugs who are ruled by emotion rather than reason. You don’t decapitate yourself to cure a headache.”
While praising the Federal Government for the compensation it made to the families of the slain corp members, he said there was no amount of money that could pay for the loss of such promising young men cut down in their prime.
He said that only justice, as demanded by the affected families, could ameliorate the loss and stem the growing culture of impunity in the country.
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Atiku calls on FG not to scrap NYSC
Atiku calls on FG not to scrap NYSC
NigerianEye
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Monday, May 16, 2011
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