Mobilization of Batch A,Stream B not feasible. ...NYSC DG

Paucity of funds’ll frustrate corpers’ mobilisation – NYSC DG

The National Youth Service Corps cannot raise enough funds to mobilise corps members for the mandatory national youth service, The PUNCH has gathered.
Findings by our correspondent showed that graduates to be mobilsed by the NYSC would have to wait for some weeks, following the inability of the NYSC to raise enough funds.

The Director General of the NYSC, Brig. Gen. Sulyman Kazaure, who stated this in Abuja on Monday, attributed the reason to the unavailability of funds arising from the N13bn shortfall in the agency’s 2016 budget.
Kazaure, who addressed the Senate Committee on Youth and Sports, said the affected prospective corps members were those in the Batch A, Stream 2.
The graduates were supposed to be mobilised into the 37 orientation camps across the country this Friday.

The NYSC DG said, “As of today (Monday), the required money for the exercise has not been provided by the Federal Government, despite a series of efforts made to that effect through letters over the past (few) weeks by the NYSC.”

Kazaure lamented that the request letters to get the operational funds for the mobilisation were forwarded to the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports, the Ministry of Finance, and the Presidency before the expiration of the orientation camp for Batch A, Stream 2  corps members  without any favorable response.
He said, “We are presently at a loss in the NYSC now as there is no money for us to mobilise thousands of prospective corps members  in the Batch A, Stream 2 to  camp this Friday as earlier planned despite efforts made by us to get things done in that direction several weeks ago.

“The problem staring us in the face arose from the N13bn shortfall we had in the 2016 budget estimate. The agency made a strong request for its provision during the budget defence about three months ago.”
Kazaure, however, expressed the hope that a last-minute intervention might be made by the Presidency.

He explained that the Chief of Staff to the President had invited the Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, to see him over the matter.
The Chairman of the senate committee, Senator Obinna Ogba, also expressed concerns over the problem but assured the DG of their intervention as he informed him that an urgent meeting by the committee, the NYSC, the ministries of finance and budget, would be convened during the week for a quick solution to the problem.

Ogba said, “We have listened to you and we are also disturbed by the problem at hand as regards the paucity of funds for the mobilisation of prospective corps members.

“An urgent meeting by us, your establishment and the ministries of finance and budget and national planning would surely be called, possibly before this week runs out because the NYSC is not something to joke with.
“Even if it is through urgent supplementary budget provisions, the problem must be quickly tackled by the Federal Government.”