Elections: We will not joke about the safety of our young people in national service, INEC chairman assures NYSC DG

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has assured the Director General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Brigadier General Yushau Dogara Ahmed that the safety of youth under his supervision will be a priority during and after the upcoming general election.

The INEC chairman gave the assurance on Thursday during a courtesy visit from the DG, NYSC to his office in Abuja.

Checks revealed that the election umpire had since signed a memorandum of understanding with the NYSC leadership for the use of one-year compulsory military service graduates as ad hoc personnel during the general election.

Professor Yakubu made it known that his Commission, in conjunction with the security services, not only provides security to the youths deployed to work at the polling stations, but also takes a more than passing interest in their security at the various NYSC camps across the country. country.

He said: “No election commission, anywhere in the world, conducts elections based on its own permanent staff. For us at INEC, we are fortunate to have this large pool of national service people to complement us.

“We are concerned about the comfort, safety and security of Corps members. We will continue to put them at ease before they are sent to the polling places.

“We will even extend security to the NYSC camps.

“You asked about their safety after the election. I have stressed to the leadership of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) that force members should not be abandoned after the election, but should be returned to basics after the election.

“During training, we train them in camp so that by the time they are deployed, they are already trained. I want to assure that those in Enugu and Kano would have been trained before February 14 before leaving the camp.

“We will work together to train them before they are deployed. We adhere to the MOU we signed with NYSC. We are like conjoined twins and we will continue to work together.

“You can be sure that the safety of the Corpers is a priority, we are also concerned. It is a call to duty.”
Earlier in his remarks, Brigadier General Ahmed assured the INEC chairman that his office will “work tirelessly to ensure that all conditions of the MOU are met.

“We are already sensitizing the conscripts to allay their fears. It is a job they can be proud of. I know you’re on call day and night talking to security chiefs, to ensure the safety of force members.