By Adebayo Obajemu
The Federal Government on Monday, June 29, approved a comprehensive reform of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) since its establishment in 1973, replacing military leadership with a civilian Director-General. The reform, according to critics has exposed President Tinubu’s policy flops and incapacity to think progressively.
The reform restructured the one-year scheme into 11 specialised skills-based streams, redesigned the orientation camp programme and uniform, and directed the amendment of the NYSC Act to give immediate legal effect to the changes.
The development has since sparked intense public debate, fiercely dividing public opinion. Critics and youth advocates argue that the reform is yet another in a long series of policy flops of the current administration.
Many have argued that the scheme has outlived its usefulness and that developments in history have made it impossible to achieve the aim for which it was set up.
Larry Adetona, a London-based Nigerian scholar told BH that “When NYSC was set up in1973 three years after the end of the civil war, it was necessary as part of healing process and to foster unity. 50 years on, has that unity been achieved? No? Has any Igbo man been elected president? No?
So, why the continued existence of the scheme. It should be scrapped. The Tinubu’s reform is unnecessary.
In his own view, Chuka Nwabueze, business man, who was a corps member in 1984 said “It was fun then, as it offered opportunity to know other cultures and tradition, since you are always posted to other region outside your own.
Old Wine, New Bottle
But today, insecurity has claimed the lives of many corps members, some are still being held by bandits up till now. It should be scrapped. It’s a waste of time, and if it should be reformed, there should be consultation with all relevant stakeholders.
Nwabueze mentioned challenges facing corps members from rejection at places of primary assignment to accomodations problem unlike in the olden days when corps members were treated as government’s ‘pikins’ and feted as kings and queens.
According to critics and experts, who spoke to Business Hallmark, the structural changes, ranging from a shift to civilian leadership and extended orientation camps to uniform redesigns, expose deeper flaws in the administration’s broader socio-economic and educational policy framework.
They complained that stakeholders were not consulted before the policy was rolled out, a defining feature of the administration, according to critics.
Key elements of the NYSC reform include replacing the traditional military leadership structure with a civilian Director-General, backed by executive directors including security personnel. There’s also camp and program changes. On this, there’s extension of orientation periods from three to six weeks and replacing the classic Passing-Out Parade with a formal graduation ceremony.
There’s also a specialized streams, which Introduces 11 career-focused deployment tracks (such as Digital and Infrastructure Corps) intended to align with economic goals.
But critics argue that stretching the NYSC into an extended vocational or corporate training center attempts to patch foundational failures in Nigeria’s higher education curriculum rather than fixing universities directly.
They also talk of logistical and financial strain. Even lawmakers and educators question the economic viability of doubling camp durations (feeding, logistics, and accommodation) during a period of severe economic hardship.
More importantly, there is the fear of dilution of national unity, as stakeholders warn that altering the military-backed socialization and posting rules, such as restricting corps members from high-risk conflict zones, compromises the core post-civil war mandate of radical national integration.
Youth Opposition
A fortnight ago, some Nigerians youth advocates expressed disagreement with President Bola Tinubu’s much-talked-about reforms of the NYSC.
The president and secretary of a youths’ coalition, Abdulrahman Sani and Grace Nwafor, made this known in a statement penultimate Sunday.
The youths led by Sani and Nwafor have championed a call for the government to retain the current NYSC leadership structure.
They warned that stripping the scheme of its traditional structure could weaken one of Nigeria’s most enduring instruments for national unity, discipline, and emergency service.
The youths argued that the reforms should not alter the identity of an institution that has served the country for over five decades.
“We sincerely beg him to pause this process and allow broader stakeholder engagement before any irreversible decision is taken.
“It would be unfortunate if the NYSC gradually loses its identity and becomes known merely as another government skills acquisition program. Skills are important, but they are not the reason the scheme was created.
Its greatest achievement has been bringing young Nigerians together across ethnic, religious, and regional divides at a time when our country desperately needed healing.
“Across the world, countries, such as Singapore, South Korea, Israel and Switzerland continue to expose their young citizens to structured national, or military service because they understand that national development depends not only on knowledge but also on discipline, sacrifice, and civic responsibility. Nigeria should strengthen that tradition rather than weaken it.
“When COVID-19 placed enormous pressure on our healthcare system, it was not only permanent government workers, who answered the call. Hundreds of NYSC doctors, nurses, pharmacists and laboratory scientists stood on the frontlines in isolation centres and public hospitals across the country.
During elections, disease outbreaks and humanitarian emergencies, corps members have repeatedly proven that the NYSC is a national emergency asset, not just a youth programme.”
They dismissed suggestions that the reforms were introducing digital innovation into the scheme, noting that mobilisation, deployment, documentation and records management have already been substantially automated
“It is difficult to present digitalisation as a new reform when the NYSC has, for years, operated one of the most advanced digital administrative systems in the public service. The bigger challenge is funding. Give the scheme adequate resources, modern facilities and stronger welfare, and it will continue to deliver even greater value to Nigeria.”
Lack of Consultation
Dr. Adesida Touni, a management expert told Business Hallmark that “One of the Hallmarks of the current administration is lack of consultation before policies are announced. It’s not good for democracy. We are no longer living under the military.
This view has the backing of Dr.
Ahmed Usman Aboki, a sociologist. Aboki told BH that “From day one, this administration has conducted itself as a maximum dictator, no consultations, no debates, no town hall meeting, not even anything before policies are announced. Look at the age limits for WAEC , NECO and JAMB, the National Anthem, the introduction of new subjects, some technical without adequate teachers, yet students are tested on them.
Look at the recent increase of WAEC and NECO fees from N27,000 to N50,000 and from N30,000 to N50,000 respectively before public outcry forced a reversal.
Tinubu’s administration does not believe in consultations and this attitude has most times, lead to flops. The administration has had cause to face intense public pushback on many policies considered ruinous, forcing quick reversals on contentious issues like tertiary admission age limits, increase in WAEC and NECO fees
Public Opinion
Dr. Reuben Abati in a recent article noted that “the reform is a classic case of majoring in the minors, a misplaced priority, a wasteful adventure whose long-term subliminal objective may be mere self-enrichment that would not change much but rather cause unwanted confusion.
“The Bola Tinubu administration has advertised itself as a reform-minded administration. But certain reforms do not come across as a priority and this NYSC reform is one of such thoughtless propositions like, if we may cite an earlier example, the decision to revert to the old Nigerian National Anthem.
“I watch people at public events, they sing along most reluctantly because there was no consensus nor has there been any buy-in, that Nigeria needed to change its National Anthem.
“.”It is important that policies are not enacted or revised simply to satisfy the personal fancy, or the whims of anyone no matter how highly placed. In the case of the NYSC, nobody was consulted. We woke up one morning only to be told by the Minister of State for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande that a decision had been taken to reform the NYSC programme. Nobody needs NYSC reform.”
Aside individual criticism of policy flops, many opposition parties have flayed the administration over non consultation before policy rollout.
Only recently, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) called on President Tinubu to “abandon his neoliberal economic policies that has ruined the lives of almost the entire country or simply quit” saying Nigerians cannot continue to continue on this same path.
ADC, in a statement, said it is deeply concerned by recent reports by the World Bank indicating that 139 million Nigerians now live below the poverty line.