There had been serious crisis in Nigeria between 1967 and January 1970. Almost a decade after independence in 1960 becoming a republic in 1963, the Nigerian Civil War - popularly referred to as the Biafran War erupted in Nigeria between 1967-1970.
One can only imagine the degree of hate and resent swerving around like balloons in the air at that time.
The animosity between the easterners (Biafrans) and the westerners was epic.
The government obviously had a massive problem in their hands. Only a few years ago the country had been handed over to them to govern and in less than a decade the people were already at each other’s throat.
The war was done and over with but the people were divided now more than ever.
It was as a result of this animosity, ill will, resentment and division that the federal government came up with a masterstroke of an idea to foster peace, unity and progress.
The idea was named National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). Forget those other definitions you have heard e.g. Now your struggle/suffering continues. But we really can’t blame the people who come up with such negative creative vibes. These are just difficult economic times we live in, perilous times even.
So, university graduates from all over the country and subsequently polytechnic graduates are sent to other parts of the country for one year of service to their nation.
They are to live, learn the ways and culture of their host community and aid its development anyway they can. The aim is to inspire cultural integration and encourage relations between people from different parts of the country; after all we are one Nigeria. Some of these corps members even choose to remain in their new environment even after the end of their service year.
The NYSC scheme has worked to a reasonably large extent and one can even classify it as a success but occasionally the scheme and what it stands for experience hiccups. Corps members die as a result of inter and intra community crisis, religious crisis and more recently terrorist attacks, poor medical facilities in remote area where majority of these graduates are sent, the list continues.
Apart from these hiccups one can say the service year is profitable from more than a handful of reasons.
Youths from different parts of the country get to meet and share knowledge, culture and experiences.
Corps members have at least one year working experience before delving into the labour market.
The Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurial Development (SAED) segment of the NYSC scheme encourages and trains graduates to be self reliant and industrious. Grants and loans are even given out to serving corps members.
The scheme fosters cultural integration and destroys stereotypical thinking and ideologies. For instance one might grow up with the notion that Yoruba people are dirty or that all Edo people are witches or that everyone from Sokoto is a Muslim. The NYSC scheme opens the minds of youths and gives a broader view to life.
Well, it would be injustice to fail to mention the stipend – popularly referred to as “allawee” that corps members receive from the federal government. It’s a way of getting their share of the national cake.
The benefits of the NYSC scheme are profound and I dare say it is one of the few things Nigerian leaders have done right since independence.
However, there is still much work to be done. A major problem erupts when you pay a man for one year and stop when he has not been properly trained or gainfully employed.
So yes, the NYSC is a master stroke, one that Nigeria should be proud of. Above all, the NYSC scheme has fostered peace by creating a simple platform on which people from different parts of the country and cultural backgrounds relate. We are after all one Nigeria.
