Niger to complete abandoned N40m NYSC orientation camp

THE Niger State government says the N40 million Permanent Orientation Camp of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) abandoned by the immediate past administration would be completed before the end of the year.

Governor Abubakar Sani Bello made the declaration in Minna, the state capital, when the state coordinator of NYSC, Mrs Theresa Ibukun Arokoyo, paid a courtesy call to the Government House.

The governor, who expressed displeasure over the condition of the temporary orientation camp at Paiko, in the outskirts of Minna, immediately directed the construction of a female hostel block at the camp to ease the accommodation problem being experienced by the corps members.

He also directed that three boreholes be provided at the camp before the commencement of the next orientation camp to reduce water scarcity in the camp.

Bello regretted the inability of successive administrations in the state to build a permanent orientation camp 40 years after the creation of the state, saying “the welfare of corps members should be a priority to all of us in position of authority.

“We should not neglect the scheme because it has contributed immensely to the unity and development of this country.”

The governor also directed the reintroduction of the N3,000 monthly state allowance being paid to corps members posted to the state, and reiterated his earlier warning that the head of any ministry or parastatal-agency that rejects corps members would be dealt with.

Earlier, Mrs Arokoyo, thanked the governor for his continued support to the scheme even before her arrival in the state.

She noted that the orientation camp is in a terrible condition, with all the existing facilities in a state of disrepair.