by crossriverwatch admin
The Cross River State deputy governor, Mr Efiok Cobham has given details of how he in 1986, when he was a corp member posted to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, led a protest of over 200 Corps members to address the then NYSC State Director Alhaji Hamza Abdulahi over what he called the poor condition the Corp members were exposed to at the time.
Giving the lamentation before Corp members, staff and management of the National Youth Service Corps as a special guest of honor at the Annual Management Conference of NYSC held at Transcorp Hotel Calabar, the deputy governor said he was posted to Abuja to undergo the one year compulsory national service at Kuje Orientation Camp.
“Abuja in 1986 is not what you people are seeing now, it was a construction site then and when I saw what was on ground, where we will stay and all that, trust corps members na…,I sought for redeployment.
“But before I left there, I was among the people that led protest to the NYSC Director then Hamza Abdulahi over the poor leaving condition we were exposed to and he came out and listened to us; I don’t know how many of our leaders can do that today?
“After three weeks at the orientation camp I rejected the posting because we were sleeping like a pilgrims so I sought for redeployment because I can’t cope.
“In 1986, I didn’t know I will be part of the leaders of government today but that was then.
He tasked the Management of the scheme to look inward beyond national integration and take the issue of national development as a fresh thought given the present security situation in the country.
“When a Corper took ill in my community; he was stooling for four days but I took very good care of him when it was brought to my knowledge only to be told the following day that some Corpers including Cross River indigenes were been killed in some parts of the country, it doesn’t make sense.
“As a parent which some of us are, I have a graduate waiting for service, I will not accept if he comes with posting letter to Chibok. So this conference should look at these problems holistically.” he said.
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