Govt agencies rejecting us, Abuja corps members lament

Some National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members deployed to Abuja say they are being rejected by federal government agencies where they were posted for primary assignment.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the affected corps members are from the 2016 Batch B (Stream II) that just ended their three-week orientation.

The corps members said the major reason for their rejection was lack of funds to pay their monthly allowances.

Ojodomo Ogu, a graduate of Kogi State University, said the agency where he was posted flatly turned him down and based its decision on the lack of provision for corps members’ stipends in its 2017 budget.

Expressing his frustration, he said there was no need for the NYSC scheme to continue if government institutions could no longer accommodate corps members.

Chioma Agbasi, a University of Jos graduate, said she was rejected on the “flimsy excuse” of lack of vacancy.

Julie Andrew, who graduated from the University of Lagos, observed that the rejection was not limited to government institutions.

“I was posted to a micro-finance bank in the Central Area of Abuja which rejected me, citing lack of vacancy after they kept me waiting for two days. Thereafter, I returned to the NYSC office which re-posted me to a government agency located in the Central Area of Abuja, but the story was the same.

“To make matters worse, most employers do not provide accommodation for corps members, and this has made life difficult for those who do not have families and friends in Abuja.”

Narrating his ordeal, Adewale said he was first posted to a private firm operating in his area of specialisation, but was turned down on the excuse of re-organisation.

Aisha Hamza, a polytechnic graduate, said she was rejected simply because the organisation was accepting only university graduates.

“At the end of the day, I had to accept serving in a secondary school in Bwari without payment, and where there is also no decent accommodation,” Hamza lamented.

Dada Rabihu, managing director of an engineering company, explained why most corps members are rejected by organisations.

“Most times, we reject corps members because what they studied in school is irrelevant to the organisations’ areas of operations. For instance, last year, a corps member who studied Hausa Language and Literature was posted to us.

“We felt since he could not contribute anything meaningful to the growth of the company, the best thing was to reject him. It is not only in our interest but also for his own good.

“When you take into consideration the fact that the corps member needs to gather work experience that is related to his field of study you will accept our position.”