Think Yoruba First, Ogun Chapter

PRESS RELEASE🤫‼️ THINK YORÙBÁ FIRST ORGANIZATION CALLS FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF COMPULSORY NYSC WITH VOLUNTARY AND DECENTRALISED NATIONAL SERVICE The @officialnyscng was established in 1973 in the aftermath of the Civil War, principally to promote national integration and reconciliation. More than five decades later, Nigeria has fundamentally changed. Nigerians already live, work, study, trade, marry and build communities across state and regional boundaries. National integration can no longer be justified as requiring the compulsory relocation of every graduate. The @ThinkYoruba_1st therefore holds that the NYSC has substantially fulfilled its historic purpose and that its compulsory character should now be reconsidered. We propose that national service become voluntary, allowing young Nigerians who genuinely wish to serve to contribute in education, healthcare, agriculture, technology, community development and other sectors. Patriotism should be encouraged through opportunity and civic responsibility, not compulsion. The current system also creates unnecessary barriers for Nigerians educated abroad. Using NYSC participation as a gateway to certain Federal Government opportunities can exclude Nigerians who trained outside the country and discourage the country from benefiting from its diaspora talent. Nigeria should be creating pathways to harvest the skills, knowledge and international experience of Nigerians abroad—not creating additional barriers to their participation in national development. If a national service system is retained, the TYF proposes that it be decentralised, with service organised around geopolitical zones, states, local communities, indigenous communities where appropriate, or the individual’s established place of residence. This would allow citizens to contribute where they have meaningful connections and where their skills are needed. The compulsory movement of graduates across the country also raises questions of human-capital and resource allocation. Communities should not continually lose young professionals while receiving others through centrally imposed postings. National development should strengthen local capacity rather than treating communities simply as destinations for externally assigned manpower. Most importantly, the human cost cannot be ignored. NYSC members have been exposed to insecurity, attacks, killings and serious road accidents while travelling to or serving in unfamiliar locations. No policy of national integration should disregard the lives and safety of the citizens it is intended to serve. The TYF therefore calls for a comprehensive review of the compulsory elements of NYSC, including their compatibility with constitutional protections of fundamental rights, personal liberty and freedom of movement. The question Nigeria must now ask is whether compulsory geographic deployment remains necessary and proportionate when voluntary alternatives are available. TYF POLICY POSITION The TYF calls for: * The abolition of compulsory NYSC deployment and its replacement with voluntary service. * The removal of NYSC as an unnecessary barrier to Federal Government employment. * Equal opportunities for Nigerians educated abroad to contribute to national development. * Decentralised service based on locality, state, geopolitical zone or established residence. * Greater investment in local human-capital development. * An independent review of deaths, attacks and accidents involving corps members. * A constitutional and human-rights review of compulsory national service. Nigeria does not need to compel its young people to prove their patriotism. It needs to create a country in which citizens freely choose to contribute to its development. TYF calls for the transition from compulsory national service to a voluntary, decentralised and citizen-driven system of service.