HomeOpinion
Opinion

NYSC, Law School: A Case for Urgent Review

Law & Society Magazine
By Law & Society Magazine
80
430

NYSC
In January, 2017, I wrote a piece titled “Has NYSC Run Its Course?”. It was about the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme which was established by the NYSC Decree No. 24 of May 22, 1973 during the regime of General Yakubu Gowon, as a one year programme for fresh University graduates “to promote unity, understanding and national integration among Nigerians” after the Nigerian Civil War. It was a laudable idea at the time, and it served its purpose in those days. Even in my time, in the 1980s, many of my friends enjoyed doing their NYSC in different parts of the country. I thoroughly enjoyed doing my Law School Chamber attachment in Kaduna, in the chambers of General I.B.M. Haruna, and I’m sad that, today, the same Kaduna State has become one of the epicentres of kidnapping students, and in several cases, killing them. If I was doing my Law School Chamber attachment today, I wouldn’t step out of Lagos to do it.

I gave a few reasons why I thought the NYSC programme had lost lost its usefulness, or at least, why I believed that even if it continues, it should be reformed. The major reasons which I provided were insecurity; the poor, unhygienic conditions and the deplorable state in the NYSC Camps. The Nigerian Law School is not immune from these same constraints. And, as far as integration is concerned, today the country seems to be more divided than it has ever been, aside from during the Civil War, on lines of ethnicity/tribe and religion.

At the time I wrote the above-mentioned editorial, the insecurity in the country had not spread and deteriorated to the all time low that it has in recent times. Insecurity was concentrated in the North East with the Boko Haram insurgents, kidnapping in the South South, and a few issues with the Herdsmen in Benue State. Ergo, I stated in that piece: “Certainly, one would be playing Russian Roulette with a child’s life, if you posted them to the North East for NYSC. With all the Boko Haram activities going on there, it would be wicked and unfair to post a person who has a whole life ahead of him or her, to a place where there is a high probability of that life span being cut short, since their safety cannot be guaranteed”. Today, I can say “ditto for most parts of Nigeria”, since we have been experiencing insecurity across the country. The same way I felt about posting fresh graduates to Borno State in 2017, is the same way I feel about posting them (and Law School students) to various parts of the country in the various geopolitical zones today. Government has shown uncountable times, that it has been unable to fulfil its constitutional mandate of ensuring the security and welfare of Nigerians (see Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended in 2018)(the Constitution).

I therefore suggested that, since the NYSC was an opportunity for fresh graduates to work, at least for a year before they joined the unemployment cadre, people should no longer be constrained to go out-of-station, unless they opt to. See the articles of Omezia A.D. “Reform or Abrogate NYSC” and “Review of the NYSC Act: An Agenda for Reform” by Desmond O. Oriakhogba and Alero I. Fenemigho (Ajayi Crowther University Law Journal). Agreed, many places may be unsafe, but one tends to feel safer in an environment that one is familiar with. With the practice of Sharia in the Northern States, again, this may discourage Christians and Southerners from wanting to be posted to such places. Meanwhile, presently, I know of a few Southern Christians who were posted to the Yola and Kano Campuses of the Law School – of course, they do not want to go there. When the Federal Government turns a blind eye to State Governments implementing an unconstitutional religious policy which impinges on people’s right to freedom of movement (See Sections 10 & 41 of the Constitution) amongst others, they should know that there will be repercussions, like non-indigenes shying away from going to such places; and they cannot be forced to then go there under the guise of NYSC and Law School, when their concerns are real. Government cannot eat its cake, and have it!

I suggested that NYSC members, can be useful in their own communities. For example, many of them teach in Government schools, while Doctors are posted to Government hospitals. There are Government schools and hospitals in all the States – they can be posted to theirs. And that, instead of wasting time in the NYSC Camp doing military orientation – march past and man-o-war (when many of the graduates have no plans to join the Army or Police) – which adds little or no value to their lives, there should be skills acquisition so that Corpers could be better equipped to possibly use the skills learned during NYSC to start some small scale business when the service year ends, as opposed to joining the massive group of unemployed graduates, becoming frustrated, and even turning to criminality to make ends meet.

Nigerian Law School: Issues Arising
1) Forced Out-of-Station Postings
One of my submissions was that the Nigerian Government should learn to review its policies, update them, and abolish those that are no longer useful. NYSC is one of them. It requires updating. Therefore, many right thinking people find it rather bizarre, that the Nigerian Law School is trying to replicate the same failing NYSC model that requires reform, by posting students to out-of-station campuses by force. For many, this policy makes little sense.

Many, myself included, thought that one of the reasons for decentralising the Law School, would be so that students can attend the campus closest to their homes, or the campus of their choice. What if a family that resides in Enugu, who barely had enough money to put their child through Nsukka University, and is hoping that the child is posted to the Enugu Campus of Law School to save their meagre resources, is posted to Yola, Lagos or Bwari? How will they pay for the child’s transportation out-of-station? How will they afford to pay for accommodation and living expenses? Does that mean that they won’t see their child for one year, since they are too poor to afford travelling expenses to and from the out-of-station Campus during the school holidays? Even NYSC, no matter how low the salary is, Corpers are paid.

I’m even surprised that in the South South, the Law School Campus was taken to Yenagoa and not Port Harcourt in the first place, because Port Harcourt has always been the major city in the South South, as Lagos is in the South West, Kano in the North, and Enugu in the South East.

We also know that the conditions in the Law School Bwari Campus, which is now the main Campus, is less than desirable, and many students opt to stay in external hostels off Campus that offer better living conditions. Stories of reptiles being found in the Bwari hostel, the filth, sometimes shortage of running water there, abound. I understand that at a time, the Law School Yenagoa Campus was so bare and unsuitable, that members of the NBA were the ones contributing mattresses for use by the students posted there! What is the condition of the other campuses? Someone who went to deliver a lecture at the Lagos Law School, told me how shocked he was at seeing how decrepit things were backstage leading up to the podium.

2) Questions
Why then, force people to go to Campuses that are not well equipped and fit for purpose? Should funds not be expended on fixing the existing campuses, instead of trying to build new ones? The Governor of Rivers State has pledged N5 billion to support the Yenagoa Campus, while building a state of the art facility in the heart of Port Harcourt. I submit that other funds should rather be ploughed into improving the existing Law School campuses, instead of building more for political or other useless sentiments; for now, anyway. Port Harcourt is a project that has already been approved and commenced – I think that the expansion of Law School, should stop there for now. Let us see how it fares, before thinking of establishing more.

Again, why force people to go to Campuses that are located in insecure, isolated places, to be sitting ducks for kidnappers? Why is Government, through the Council of Legal Education (CLE), trying to keep up appearances that all is well, and there is no security risk with out-of-station postings? I visited Bwari a few times earlier this year; unlike the Lagos Campus which is situated right in the heart of town, in one of the best and more secure areas of Lagos – Victoria Island, Bwari is 40km or so outside Abuja, and the road leading there becomes rather lonely at some point, with absolutely no security presence thereon. When I visited the new Nabo Graham Douglas Law School Campus that is being constructed in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, I was glad to see that it is located also in the heart of town like Lagos, where students can feel safe, and not inside any secluded or back of beyond area.

3) Unnecessary Campuses
And then, a Senator, a non-Lawyer for that matter, decides to usurp the role of the CLE and decides that the Legal Education (Consolidation, Etc) Act 2004 (LEA) should be amended, to allow for the establishment of six more Law School campuses across the geopolitical zones, his village included! Section 1(2) of the LEA gives the CLE the responsibility for the legal education of persons seeking to become members of the legal profession, and this very much includes the Law School. Should it then be the Senate proposing new Law School campuses, or the CLE that would be the body to decide on Law School requirements? Already, the existing Law School campuses are suffering from gross underfunding, and yet the Senate has come up with this harebrained idea to build more? Who will fund it? Is it the States that cannot pay their workers’ salaries? Or the Federal Government that is crumbling under the weight of debt, so much so that ASUU is always on strike because of non-payment of salaries, allowances etc and lack of proper maintenance and upgrading of Universities, that will fund the construction of new campuses, when the existing ones are in dire need of a huge injection of capital?

Good Government
Section 4(2) of the Constitution enjoins the National Assembly to inter alia, makes laws for the peace, order and good government of the Federation, not to satisfy silly whims and caprices of Politicians. Granted Items 27 & 28 on the Concurrent Legislative list empowers the National Assembly to establish institutions for professional education, but the question is how sensible such an action is presently, with the situation that Nigeria is facing in terms of insecurity, insufficient funds plus the fact that new campuses are not required. When resources are scare, they must be distributed in terms of priority, and not wasted on non-necessities. Why waste what we don’t have?! Additionally, presently, the Law School Campuses are spread across the geopolitical zones.

It is obvious that already, Law School Campuses like Yola and Yenagoa are under-subscribed, as those States obviously do not have enough home students to fill their Campuses, nor are they Campuses of choice for out-of-State students. This also sets the stage for corruption, as those who are financially capable will use any means possible, including the offering of bribes to Law School Staff, to change their postings to preferred campuses. Enough of illogical Government policies and half cocked, haphazard, extemporaneous proposed laws from the Senate.

Conclusion
Nigeria is being ruled (not led), by a bunch of Political egotistical ‘Apas’ (Wastrels). But, in the case of the Law School, the CLE that knows better has openly disagreed with the Senate/Sponsor of this new amendment. Recklessly establishing Law School campuses all over the place, so that Politicians can boast that while they were in the Senate, they were able to get a post-Tertiary institution located in their villages, cannot be a sufficient reason for such a ludicrous action, when funding even for the ones that are presently in existence is lacking – the allegation that the present campuses are not enough to admit those who want to go to Law School, has been debunked; the CLE posting innocent students out-of-station given the security and economic challenges the country is facing, is also ill-advised. I urge an urgent rethink.

Previous article
Parallels in two tragedies
Next article
From taking it with consent to hacking it with contempt, By Alex Otti
Law & Society Magazine
Law & Society Magazinehttps://lawandsocietymagazine.com

Related Articles

80 COMMENTS

  1. My relatives all the time say that I am killing my
    time here at net, except I know I am getting know-how
    everyday by reading such fastidious posts.

    Also visit my web-site: Bonny

  6. Hey there! I understand this is sort of off-topic however I needed to ask.

    Does operating a well-established blog like yours require a massive amount work?
    I am completely new to writing a blog however I do write
    in my diary every day. I’d like to start a blog so I can easily share my own experience and thoughts online.

    Please let me know if you have any ideas or tips for brand new aspiring
    blog owners. Appreciate it!

    My webpage – https://cults3d.com/fr/utilisateurs/jarvispilgaard12

  7. My brother suggested I may like this web site. He used to
    be totally right. This publish actually made my day.

    You can not imagine simply how much time I had spent for this info!

    Thank you!

    My website – iegygc.com

  9. When some one searches for his vital thing, thus he/she desires to be available that in detail, therefore that thing is maintained over
    here.

    Feel free to visit my web page Ashli

  16. Write more, thats all I have to say. Literally, it seems as though you relied on the
    video to make your point. You clearly know what youre talking about, why throw away
    your intelligence on just posting videos to your blog when you could be giving us something informative to read?

    Stop by my site – zippyshare.com

  18. No matter if some one searches for his required thing, so he/she wishes to be available that
    in detail, so that thing is maintained over here.

    My website – discuss

  19. Hey there just wanted to give you a quick heads up and let
    you know a few of the images aren’t loading properly.
    I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue.
    I’ve tried it in two different internet browsers and both show the same results.

    Here is my web site; discuss

  21. I believe everything published made a bunch of sense.

    However, think about this, suppose you were to write a killer post title?
    I am not suggesting your information is not good, but what if you added a post title
    that makes people desire more? I mean NYSC, Law
    School: A Case for Urgent Review – Law and Society Magazine.
    is kinda vanilla. You could look at Yahoo’s front page and watch how they
    create news titles to get viewers to click.
    You might try adding a video or a pic or two to grab people interested about what you’ve
    written. In my opinion, it might bring your posts a little livelier.

    my web site :: bbs.dnmso.com

  25. Greetings from Carolina! I’m bored to tears at work so I decided to
    check out your website on my iphone during lunch break. I really like the
    knowledge you provide here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home.
    I’m shocked at how quick your blog loaded on my
    mobile .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyhow, awesome site!

    My site; http://prisnis.com/index.php?qa=user&qa_1=growthsoccer3

  29. Excellent post. I was checking continuously this blog and I am impressed!
    Very useful information specially the last part 🙂 I care for such information much.
    I was looking for this particular info for a long time.

    Thank you and good luck.

    My web site; clashofcryptos.trade

  30. For newest information you have to pay a quick visit the web and
    on the web I found this web site as a most excellent web site for most recent updates.

    my web-site … buy cosplay

  32. May I just say what a relief to discover a person that really understands what they are talking about on the net.

    You definitely know how to bring an issue to light and make it important.
    More people ought to read this and understand this side of the story.
    I was surprised you’re not more popular since you certainly have the gift.

    My homepage: discuss

  33. I’ve been browsing on-line more than three hours nowadays, yet I by
    no means discovered any attention-grabbing article like yours.

    It is lovely price enough for me. In my opinion, if all site owners and bloggers
    made excellent content as you probably did, the web will probably be much more helpful than ever before.

    Check out my website :: jesuscarter.iwopop.com

  35. After going over a few of the articles on your web site, I really like your way of writing a blog.

    I saved it to my bookmark site list and will be checking back soon. Please visit
    my web site as well and let me know what you think.

    Here is my web page :: myemotion.faith

  36. hey there and thank you for your info – I have definitely picked up
    anything new from right here. I did however expertise several technical issues using this web site, since I experienced to reload the website a lot of times previous to I could
    get it to load properly. I had been wondering if your web hosting is OK?
    Not that I’m complaining, but sluggish loading instances times will very
    frequently affect your placement in google and can damage your
    high-quality score if ads and marketing with Adwords. Anyway I am adding this RSS
    to my e-mail and can look out for a lot more of your respective exciting content.
    Make sure you update this again very soon.

    Here is my webpage :: https://www.keepandshare.com/discuss3/7352/where-to-acquire-the-appropriate-lashes

  37. Hmm it appears like your website ate my first comment (it was
    extremely long) so I guess I’ll just sum it up what I had written and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog.

    I as well am an aspiring blog blogger but I’m still new to
    the whole thing. Do you have any tips for newbie blog writers?
    I’d certainly appreciate it.

    Here is my website … hero costumes

  40. Greetings from Ohio! I’m bored to tears at work so I decided to browse your blog on my iphone during lunch
    break. I really like the information you present here and can’t wait to take a
    look when I get home. I’m shocked at how quick your blog
    loaded on my cell phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G ..
    Anyways, very good site!

    Look at my site – tsxxue.com

  41. What’s up to every body, it’s my first visit of this blog; this weblog includes amazing and genuinely good information in support of
    visitors.

    Here is my web site … be2concept.be

  46. magnificent points altogether, you simply received a new reader.
    What could you suggest in regards to your post
    that you simply made some days ago? Any certain?

    Look into my web page … mashaleilm.com

  51. I am really impressed with your writing skills as well as with the layout
    on your weblog. Is this a paid theme or did you customize it yourself?

    Anyway keep up the excellent quality writing, it is rare to see a nice blog like this one these
    days.

    Review my website webcamera.ru

  52. I am not sure the place you are getting your information,
    but good topic. I must spend some time finding out much
    more or figuring out more. Thank you for wonderful information I used
    to be on the lookout for this info for my mission.

    Feel free to surf to my web site – discuss

  53. Excellent blog! Do you have any recommendations for aspiring writers?
    I’m planning to start my own site soon but I’m a little lost on everything.
    Would you recommend starting with a free platform like WordPress or go for a paid option? There are so many options out there that I’m totally confused ..
    Any recommendations? Thank you!

    My webpage … proshnobox.com

  55. Hey there! I know this is kind of off topic but I was wondering which
    blog platform are you using for this website? I’m getting tired of WordPress because
    I’ve had issues with hackers and I’m looking at alternatives for
    another platform. I would be fantastic if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.

    Here is my blog :: http://webcamera.ru/user/casezoo0/

  57. Hello! I know this is kinda off topic but I was wondering if you knew where I could find a captcha plugin for my comment form?
    I’m using the same blog platform as yours and I’m
    having trouble finding one? Thanks a lot!

    Also visit my website – husarria.eu

  60. I was wondering if you ever considered changing the structure of your site?
    Its very well written; I love what youve got to say.
    But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people could connect with it better.
    Youve got an awful lot of text for only having
    1 or 2 pictures. Maybe you could space it out better?

    Also visit my homepage – http://mp3-zone.ru/user/friendveil04/

  62. Howdy! Do you know if they make any plugins to assist with SEO?

    I’m trying to get my blog to rank for some targeted keywords but I’m not seeing very
    good success. If you know of any please share. Cheers!

    Feel free to visit my web-site … diveqa.com

  69. Way cool! Some extremely valid points! I appreciate you
    writing this write-up and also the rest of the site is very good.

    Feel free to visit my webpage – discuss

  72. Thanks for your marvelous posting! I quite enjoyed reading it, you can be a great
    author.I will make certain to bookmark your blog and may come back in the foreseeable future.

    I want to encourage continue your great posts, have a nice morning!

    My homepage – https://linktr.ee/thomasscent3

  76. Hi, i think that i saw you visited my blog so i came to “return the favor”.I am trying to find things to improve my website!I suppose
    its ok to use some of your ideas!!

    My web page … discuss

  80. We are a bunch of volunteers and opening a new
    scheme in our community. Your site provided us with helpful
    information to work on. You’ve performed a
    formidable process and our entire community will likely be grateful
    to you.

    Review my website discuss

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Stay Connected

1,167,000FansLike
34,567FollowersFollow
1,401,000FollowersFollow
0SubscribersSubscribe
- Advertisement -

Latest Articles

Load more

Law & Society Magazine is a general interest magazine with a bias for law and its effects on the society

Contact us: [email protected]

© 2024 Copyright - Law & Society Magazine