Boko Haram: NYSC Members Besiege Hqtrs For Redeployment

Posted by admin Boko Haram, Latest Politics, NYSC (National Youth Service Corp) Wednesday, July 6th, 2011

In an expression of heightened concern over the growing insecurity in the country, especially in the north, about 20,000 corps members posted to the northern states have besieged the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) headquarters in Abuja, to seek redeployment.

This scenario played out yesterday morning as prospective 2011 batch ‘B’ corps members waiting to be sworn in across the country after registration refused serving in the north for fear of their safety, especially now that the Boko Haram sect has continued to unleash mayhem on security agencies across the northern states

LEADERSHIP also learnt that about 95,000 corps members were posted across the country for their orientation. When LEADERSHIP visited the NYSC headquarters yesterday, scores of prospective corps members from the south posted to states like Kano, Borno, Yobe, Bauchi and Gombe were seen loitering, waiting to get the attention of the management of the scheme for re-deployment t0 states in the south.

Some NYSC members who spoke with LEADERSHIP said they were seeking redeployment because of security threat, citing the Boko Haram’s unchecked depredations as example.

Amah Emmanuel, one of such corps members, said: “Like yesterday, there was still an attack on the Customs. If they could defy such security personnel, what do you think they would do to corps members that have no security training? We don’t even know how safe it is to travel from here to Borno State. I am juxtaposing the prospect of losing serving with the NYSC and my life. Looking at the two, I think my life is far more important and I am not ready to make any useless sacrifices on the basis of trying to serve.

“My consideration is my safety; if it is guaranteed I don’t mind serving in any part of the north. I for one wouldn’t want to go to Borno, I prefer to wait, but I want the government to help address this situation, so that NYSC would post us to anywhere that is not risk- prone; that will be good.”

Another NYSC member who gave her name as Mary and who finished from the University of Benin and posted to Kano, said: “I want relocation from Kano because of my safety. Moreover there are no job opportunities there. How would they guarantee my security if am going to work. Last time they said 10 people died, I know it was more than 10 because another died in Niger State that was not mentioned.”

Speaking with LEADERSHIP, a director in NYSC who prefered anonymity advised the prospective corps members to first resume for registration and the orientation course which will last three weeks at the states they were posted after which they could apply for relocation.

“They are told to go to where they are posted for their orientation first, then after the orientation they can now apply for relocation, but staying here will make them lose this opportunity. Mind you, registration will close by midnight tomorrow.

“If they are not registered, then they cannot be redeployed. We posted 95,000 corps members this time; if we stay here saying we are redeploying them, what time do we have for the orientation? “They have been told to follow the normal channel; it was a mistake that some of them were attended to here. The D-G was just magnanimous by allowing those that came to be attended to here.”

The fear of being deployed to the North has, this time, gone beyond individuals to educational institutions. The Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Ondo State, which lost a graduate in the post-election riots in Bauchi, recently asked the management of the NYSC not to post its graduates to the northern part of the country.

The university, in a statement by its principal assistant registrar, information, protocol and public relations, Mr. Sola Imoru, said the university decided to cry out because of fears expressed by students and members of the institution’s alumni association on the sporadic bombings, killing and other forms of violence in Bauchi, Borno, Plateau, Yobe and other states. The university said corps members should be allowed to serve in their respective regions.

The management of the scheme had, earlier in various memos pasted around the offices, informed corps members seeking redeployment to go back and apply through the state coordinator in the states they were posted to.

A bomb thrown on a military patrol vehicle along Abbaganaram Road by the suspected members of Jamaatyul Ahlis Sunnah lid Daawa wal Jahad, popularly known as Boko Haram, at about 7 Wednesday morning injured three soldiers.

The commander of the Joint Task Force, Major General Jack Okechukwu Nwagbo, said the three soldiers were injured in the bomb blast, adding that no death was recorded.

He stated that the bombers came on a motorcycle and threw the bomb on the patrol vehicle and fled through Budum Road. His men have cordoned the area with a view to fishing out the fleeing bombers, he said.

The commander stated that they had cordoned the entire Abbaganaram, Budum, Lawan Bukar, Galadima junction and Shehuri, and that all the major streets leading to these areas will be blocked until the suspects were arrested.

The sect members were also said to have came through Bulabulin, shot sporadically in the air at the Customs area after the bomb blast to scare the public in order to pave way for their easy passage.

Meanwhile as at the time of filing this report, traders at the Custom market have abandoned their wares and fled the market as they could not close properly for fear of being attacked by the sect members or intimidation by security operatives.

The main Maiduguri Monday Market, schools, banks and other business premises were hurriedly closed, and people were seen running for their lives. Major streets in Maiduguri were completely deserted as people rushed home to stay indoors.

Also, suspected members of Boko Haram yesterday attacked police divisional headquarters in Toro, Bauchi state and allegedly broke into the police armoury

An online agency, the Saharareporters also reports that the men on duty fled for safety when the Boko Haram members attacked the station just as they were said to have carted away large quantities of arms and ammunition during the attack.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) yesterday faulted the stance of the State Security Service (SSS) over its comment on the arrested cell commanders of the Boko Haram militants.

The President of the NBA, Mr Joseph Daudu SAN, stated this in Abuja during a press conference on the forthcoming First Criminal Justice Reform Conference, organized by the Bar.

Daudu also said the SSS overreached its power by saying it would not prosecute the arrested members of the group.

According to the NBA, the SSS lacks the power to decide whether or not to prosecute anyone arrested for waging war against the state.

He said, “It is the function of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to decide to or not to prosecute. Such statement should not come from the SSS”.

The SSS spokesperson, Marylin Ogar had on Monday, claimed those arrested would not be prosecuted in line with the decision of President Goodluck Jonathan to adopt a ‘carrot and stick’ policy.

He also added the NBA would consider the report of a committee set up to look into the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu and the President of the Court of Appeal, Isa Ayo Salami feud at its next National Executive Council (NEC) meeting which will hold in Katsina later in this month.

Just on Tuesday, the service chiefs led by the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshall Oluseyi Petinrin including the National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj-Gen. Owoeye Azazi (Rtd.) implicated the judiciary at the senate over the fight against terrorism.

According to them, granting bail to apprehended terrorists has heighten the heinous crime as those released always return to cause more havoc.

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