There are strong murmurs for the NYSC to
be done away with.
The National Youth Service Corps was
established in 1973 .
General Yakubu Gowon in an attempt to
work on the 3R principles (Reconstruction,
Rehabilitation and Reconciliation) created
the NYSC scheme under Decree no. 24. This
was three years after the civil war.
REASON WHY THE NYSC SCHEME WAS
CREATED
 According to the Decree No.51 of June 16,
1993, the NYSC scheme was set up to
achieve these objectives:-
a. To inculcate discipline in Nigerian
youths by instilling in them a tradition of
industry at work, and, of patriotic and loyal
service to Nigeria in any situation they may
find themselves;
b. To raise the moral tone of the Nigerian
youths by giving them the opportunity to
learn about higher ideals of national
achievement, social and cultural
improvement;
c. To develop in the Nigerian youths the
attitudes of mind, acquired through shared
experience and suitable training, which will
make them more amenable to mobilisation
in the national interest;
d. To enable Nigerian youths acquire the
spirit of self reliance by encouraging them
to develop skills for self employment;
e. To contribute to the accelerated growth
of the national economy;
f. To develop common ties among the
Nigerian youths and promote national
unity and integration;
g. To remove prejudices, eliminate
ignorance and confirm at first hand the
many similarities among Nigerians of all
ethnic groups; and
h. To develop a sense of corporate
existence and common destiny of the
people of Nigeria.
44 years after its establishment, there have
been strong murmurs for the NYSC to be
scrapped especially from young Nigerians.
It is unlikely that the one-year mandatory
service would be scrapped anytime soon as
the debate still rages on.
For those who want the NYSC to be gone,
here are five reasons why they feel it has
no place in today’s Nigeria.
SEE REASONS WHY NIGERIANS WANT
NYSC SCRAPPEDM 
1. The NYSC has done nothing to
accelerate the growth of the Nigerian
economy or contributed much to it. The
economy is still reeling from a recession
and despite decades of its existence, there
is no concrete data that NYSC contributes
to the economy in whatever shape or form.
2. The ghost of Biafra still haunts Nigeria.
The unfortunate rise of Nnamdi Kanu is a
strong example that the NYSC has failed in
its objective to unite Nigerians. Boko
Haram, Niger-Delta militants and Arewa
youths clearly show that Nigeria is far from
united. Yes, inter-tribal marriages exist but
tribal prejudices are still very strong in
Nigeria.
3. Young Nigerians don’t need the NYSC to
be self-reliant. Successive governments
have ignored the youth by neglecting the
educational system. Young Nigerians have
learnt to be self-reliant a long time ago
without the help of the government or
NYSC.
4. A governmental scheme can’t teach
morals. This is up to the job of families.
The family is the smallest but strongest
social group in a society. To fix morals in
young people, you have to fix Nigerian
families. This is another clear cut example
of the government putting the cart before
the horse. You learn morals when you are a
child and not as a young adult.
5. The NYSC scheme has been used to
create more teaching jobs. The unfortunate
thing about this is that young Nigerians
who have been exposed to sub-standard
teaching over the years impart their half-
baked learnings to children in dire need of
a solid education. This is a case of the
blind leading the blind.
Spending one year in mandatory service is
outdated.
While our counterparts abroad start to do
positive things from an early age, the
Nigerian youth is bugged down by a
horrible educational system and a
mandatory one-year service to a country
that has done nothing for them.
What do you think about the NYSC
Programme – Do you want it Scrapped or
Not?
Drop your comments