In a renewed effort to boost discipline and performance among corps members, the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has urged corps employers to enforce stricter monitoring practices across workplaces.
Speaking at a one-day NYSC/corps employers workshop held in Gombe on Thursday, the Gombe State Coordinator, Chinwe Nwachuku, emphasized the importance of attendance and movement registers to track corps members’ daily performance.
“If a corps member didn’t work for you, don’t give them clearance,” Nwachuku warned. “We must have proper registers to monitor attendance and movement.”
Declaring the event open, Head of Gombe Civil Service, Ahmed Abdullahi, called on employers to foster meaningful relationships with corps members and support their welfare.
“Visit them after offering accommodation; let them feel a sense of belonging. This is a short but critical phase in their lives,” Abdullahi said.
Representing the NYSC Director-General Brigadier-General Olakunle Nafiu, the North-East Area Office II Director, Aishatu Adamu, highlighted the growing concern over employers’ indifference to corps members’ welfare and supervision. She warned that this negligence is leading to widespread truancy, poor workplace conduct, and an increase in service evasion.
“This workshop is a patriotic call to action,” Nafiu stated. “It’s time to strengthen our partnership and tackle the emerging gaps affecting the Scheme’s effectiveness.”
According to him, NYSC plays its role by informing stakeholders about deployment, facilitating orientation, and ensuring employers receive corps members promptly. In return, employers are expected to provide decent accommodation, conduct inductions, assign relevant tasks, issue clearances, and support CDS and SAED participation.
The NYSC boss decried the rising trend of employers turning a blind eye to absenteeism and even encouraging misconduct.
“Where is the partnership that once inspired corps members to proudly serve their nation?” he asked.
He urged that state governments invest in transit lodges and local governments build permanent corps lodges to ease accommodation challenges, a major cause of absenteeism and rejection.
“Our visits show many employers can’t even locate their corps members due to lack of accommodation and supervision,” he added. “This situation must change.”
Mailumo Abubakar, a former NYSC Assistant Director, also spoke at the event and recommended a revision of the posting policy to ensure more corps members serve in rural areas rather than urban centers.
In his presentation, Principal of Government Comprehensive Day Secondary School Tabra, Alhaji Magaji Abubakar, stressed the importance of creating a supportive work environment for corps members.
“Employers should offer mentorship, provide adequate allowances, and treat corps members with respect,” he said. “How you treat them today shapes how they remember and relate with you tomorrow.”
The event concluded with calls for collaborative solutions and actionable recommendations aimed at restoring discipline, accountability, and national pride within the NYSC framework.
