Brig.- Gen Yushau Ahmed, Director-General, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has urged corps members to embrace the Skills Acquisition Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) program during their service.
Ahmed said that the main focus of the SAED was to ensure that after service, they became employers of labor, as people no longer relied on government for ‘white-collar’ jobs.
The director general spoke during his visit to the 2023 Batch A, Stream 2 corps members in Lagos on Friday.
”We have details of your predecessors who made the best use of SAED while they were in camp, and today they are entrepreneurs and employers of labor.
“Some of you on posting for primary assignment might find yourselves serving under them, because they chose to distinguish themselves, and today, they are independent and self-reliant” he said.
He expressed joy at the clean state of the NYSC orientation camp in Iyana-Ipaja, Lagos,
“Everywhere I go, I address others as ladies and gentlemen corps members, but I think Lagos corps members deserve to be addressed as distinguished corps members.
“This is because, from the gate coming into the camp, I observed that the environment is very clean and the testimony I got from the Coordinator is that Batch A, Stream 2 Corps members are exceptional.
“The Coordinator during her address talked about not having enough chairs, and I don’t think anyone addressed as ‘distinguished’ can be allowed to be standing.
“So my distinguished corps members in Lagos State, before I leave here, I will donate 200 chairs and three cows for you because you’re special and should see yourself as golden jubilee corps members serving during NYSC@50,” he said.
On the issue of security of corps members, the NYSC D-G said, ‘deliberate effort and collaboration with critical stakeholders involving security agents as Police, DSS, Civil Defense and the Army are in place’.
He however, tasked corps members on discipline and obedience, declaring that anyone who violated the orientation camp rules/regulations would be decamped and sent home.
“The training you are being given in camp is strategically and deliberately meant to toughen you and prepare you for life ahead; take all training very important, so you must approach all activities with seriousness,” he said.
Also, he warned corps members to avoid travelling and to obtain due permission from Camp officials and their places of primary assignments if they had to.
Speaking, Mrs Yetunde Baderinwa, NYSC Cordinator in Lagos, said that the corps members showed willingness to learn from camp officials and imbibed the spirit of nationalism.
“So far in our programmes, we have had several lectures, including security, safety, motivation lecture, drug prevention, SAED, integrity lecture, sporting and social activities.
“They have been dedicated and resolved to serve their fatherland, and now see themselves as one, brothers and sisters, in spite of differences in their social cultural, religious and ethnic backgrounds,” she added.
The Lagos Coordinator said that the Lagos State Government had been doing a lot to ensure that activities of the scheme were achieved.
She said that recently, the orientation camp was renovated with some painting works which had made the it look beautiful.
She, however, noted that the camp still faced the challenge of limited space which always resulted in some corps members posted to Lagos being redeployed to neighboring states.
