A former director with the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has advised serving corps members to adhere strictly to the scheme’s dress code.
Mrs Abosede Aderibigbe, a former director, NYSC Press and Public Relations, gave the advice on Thursday while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp in Sagamu, Ogun.
She said that those found wanting might risk their service years being extended by the NYSC management.
Aderibigbe, who recently retired from the NYSC, was invited by the NYSC to give a motivational-talk to the Batch ‘B’ Stream II corps members currently undergoing their orientation.
She pleaded with the NYSC management to re-orientate corps members so that they could always project positively the image of the scheme through maximum dedication and discipline.
Aderibigbe said that the NYSC should consider stiffer penalties such as suspensions and extended service tenures for indecent and improper dressing by corps members.
She acknowledged that though the NYSC Act at present did not stipulate any specific sanction for improper dressing.
She said that it was incumbent on corps members to dress appropriately depending on the occasion.
“The standard uniform every corps members is supposed to wear is the green khaki with the corresponding white t-shirt and the cap.
“They are also expected to wear the crested vest alongside the jungle boots or white sneakers depending on the occasion.
“Corps members are supposed to wear their NYSC uniforms on the days of their Community Development Service (CDS), biometrics or when going for anything official concerning the scheme.
“But what you see these days are corps members wearing their khakis with different shades of t-shirts, shoes or even alter the shade of khaki entirely from what is approved by the NYSC,” Aderibigbe said.
She said such flagrant abuse was a contravention of the law regulating dress code for all corps members as stipulated in Section 3, subsection (h) of the scheme’s 2012 bye-laws.
Aderibigbe said that corps members should not abuse the dress code out of spite for the uniform.
She said that corps members should rather see the uniform as a thing of pride in national service.
“Indecent and improper dressing, in the name of fashion or whatever, is really frowned at by the NYSC. You cannot be in the military and dress anyhow.
“Stiffer penalties for those in the habit of breaking the dressing code will help to engender more discipline amongst corps members.”
Aderibigbe also advised the corps members and youths in general to take pride in hard-work.
She said they should not cut corners or find an easy way to acquire wealth through falsehood.
“Improvement can be done in some areas. The NYSC needs to intensify how it is monitoring the corps members because many of them do not want to do anything but they want free money.
“Many of them look to cutting corners even during their service year by not being committed in their places of primary assignments.
“Hopefully, interventions will put a stop to these type of issues.
“Our children must refrain from the notorious internet fraud; popularly known as ‘yahoo, yahoo’, looking for free money they did not work for.
“Money that you did not work for, you will not get the reward for it.
“Likewise, you will not be prudent in spending it. When you work for money, you get reward for it,” she said. (NAN)
