By Godwin Onuh Odeh
This piece is a reaction to the disturbing news published by the Sahara Reporter on the 13th of July 2022 titled; “Nigerian Senate Presidents’ Lawan’s “Stooge” Appointed NYSC Director-General Accused of Fraud”. It may be recalled that Brigadier General Shuaibu assumed office as the 18th Director General of NYSC on 10th of May 2019 and handed over to his successor, Brigadier General Mohammad Fada on 18th of May 2022 after successful stewardship. Barely forty three days after assumption of office, isn’t exceedingly shocking to read what was published by Sahara Reporter? Hence the response. Three things fires the respond to this very sad news. One patriotic zeal; two, over a decade of scholarship on NYSC and thirdly, fear and pains of undoing the epic and monumental achievement of Major General Shuaibu Ibrahim. Though identifiable and separable, the three reasons are intricately linked and bond by cord of patriotism.
On the first handle, patriotism which is the incurable love for one’s country, identification with it, and special concern for its well-being and that of the compatriots triggered this response as said. This love for one’s country though too broad would be limited to the confine of NYSC engagement and operations. Just like in every successful marriage the fundamental ingredient is love, unity take the place of love in nation building. NYSC constructed after the post Nigerian civil war years is to serve as symbol of national unity and promote it through youth mobilization particularly of the graduates. The acclaimed founder, General Yakubu Gowon retired aptly captured this thus: “Youths constitute a dominant force for national mobilization and growth and such have a crucial role to play in the all-important task of nation building”. This is clearly stated in paragraph (d) lines i to iii in the founding objective of the scheme, thus: (d) to develop common ties among our youths and promote national unity by ensuring that:
i. as far as possible, youths are assigned to job in the states other than their states of origin;
ii. each group, assigned to work together, is a representative of the country as possible;
iii. the youths are exposed to the mode of living of the people in different parts of the country with a view to removing prejudices, eliminating ignorance and confirming at first hand the many similarities among Nigerians of all ethnic groups.
In line with the above, and to fulfill one of the core mandates of NYSC as a graduate within the stipulated age of service; after graduation in 2007, I subjected my humble self to mobilization in the spirit of patriotism and service to the fatherland. At the end of service, I received the State Coordinator’s Letter/Certificate of Commendation of Meritorious Service. Proponents of the abolition of the scheme avers that it is no longer relevant and that the above laudable objective has been defeated. However, I was elated while in the residence of His Excellency, Distinguished Senator Aliyu Magatarkada Wamakko, representing Sokoto North, on Monday 11th of July 2022 when I saw mammoth crowd of corps member who came to pay him Sallah homage. In his greetings, he mentioned the 36 States of the federation including Abuja, FCT where corpers were believed to have hailed from. Thereafter, he charges them to respect the culture of the host community. The same was done by Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal when corps member visited the Sokoto State Government House. Patriotism and national unity therefore, is still at the front burner of NYSC operation and it is effective. As result, bad news and a very wrong, non-patriotic and non-creative head or DG would hamper this timeless objective.
The second handle deals with issues of over a decade of personal scholarship in NYSC and Youth Studies. Patriotic zeal and scholarship was to lead to my first ever publication on NYSC titled “The National Youth Service Scheme and The Challenge of Nation Building in Nigeria, (1973-2008)”. The love for NYSC and the nation reflected in both my Master and PhD Dissertation respectively titled “A Historical Survey of NYSC Community Development Scheme in Abuja, Federal Capital Territory, 1983-2010” and “Nigeria NYSC’s Role in the Founding of The Gambia National Youth Service Scheme, 1996-2004”. On NYSC alone, I have a well over a dozen reputable publications (including books, book chapters and journals) aside special piece on national dallies arising from keen observation and interest in the affairs of the scheme and of patriotic service to the nation. The forthcoming volume, which is already in the press is titled “Shuaibu Ibrahim: Iconic Years in NYSC”. It is therefore, a thing of pain for a man that have invested much time, emotion and strength and resource to see something going wrong in NYSC particularly one whose special volume is currently in the press and about to be unveiled to the public.
The third handle which is the last is the pain of undoing the recently monumental achievements of Major General Shuaibu Ibrahim. The compilation of it in single volume for posterity would soon be out as noted. From evidences gleaned from core areas such as General Information, Youth Mobilization for Nation Building, Community Development Development Service and Rural Development, Language Studies, Health Education and Services, Social Education, Programme Evaluation, Scheme Appraisal, among others, the Major General Shuaibu Ibrahim’s years strongly stands out and he appear taller than many previous director general given his epic achievement in the face of the most dreadful covid19 pandemic. He initiated and was captured in over 45 development strides within just two years in office. Initially, opinions were that he may at best be in par or compared to the much celebrated Colonel Akpan and Momoh, but at the end of his tenure, he was adjudged to have surpassed all his predecessors. Against the background of this groundbreaking record the expectations of the pundits and scholars were that he would be giving the singular privilege of having a tenure extension of at least one year to ushering NYSC into the much awaited Golden Jubilee (50th Anniversary) come May, 2023. Alas, he handed over probably because of his promotion to the rank of a Major General while heading the scheme, whose leadership over the years appear to have been dominated by officers of lesser cadre (rank of Colonel and Brigadier General).
From the forgoing, whatever brouhaha Major General Shuaibu Ibrahim departure might have created given the very high leadership standard he has set for subsequent national leadership of the scheme, the fact remains that NYSC is no more an oasis to rest and enjoy as it was previously, but a place for a particularly patriotic military officers of high premium and creative minds capable of addressing the multifaceted challenges of the teeming graduate youth and of the nation. Fada, no doubt inherited a very big leadership shoes to step into. Whether the allegation is true or not, Brigadier General Mohammed Fada should braze up or be made to sit-up to build on the legacy of his predecessor towards achieving the noble ideal of NYSC.
*Dr. Odeh, Specialist in NYSC and Youth Studies, wrote in from the Department of History, Sokoto State University, Sokoto
