The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has assured the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCOs) of its readiness to supply skilled manpower for the reformation of inmates.
Alhaji Ahmed Ikaka, Director of NYSC South-East Area Office, gave the assurance on Wednesday in Enugu while exchanging views with Mr Joseph Emelue, the Controller of NCoS, Enugu State Command.
Ikaka noted that the NYSC would accede to the demands of the service for more corps members who were professionals in education, health and art-and-craft.
“The NYSC before now had continued to provide quality manpower needs for all states in the country and I can tell you categorically that NYSC supplies about 60 per cent of the manpower needs in some critical services.
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“We have corp members scattered all over the country in rural schools both primary and secondary; NYSC provides the majority of the health manpower in PHC centres and engages in training of Nigerians in communities on modern agricultural practices and arts-and-craft etc,’’ he said.
The director said that the scheme over the years had continued to partner with the correctional service to train inmates and ensure that they get holistic reformation before their jail terms elapsed.
“Enhancing inmates educational capacity and level; training them on viable skills in arts-and-crafts and other sorts of training will, in turn, help the society to be crime-free and make them more useful to themselves, families and entire society.
“Someone that is engaged daily will never have the time to steal, cause riot, mayhem or destruction in any form. Since it is only the idle mind that is the devil’s workshop,’’ he said.
According to him, NYSC within the South-East will continue to cherish and nurture its partnership and collaboration with the NCoS.
Earlier, Emelue said that the visit was to deepen the partnership and synergy between NCoS and the NYSC in Enugu State and the South-East.
The controller noted that the NCoS Enugu State Command was seeking for more corp members posted to its custodian centres to facilitate various reformatory and skill acquisition programmes.
“We want to expand in all aspect of our programmes meant to reform our inmates to be better, well-positioned and equipped to face life after their reformatory period with NCoS had elapsed.
“There is no better place to seek this type of help than to come to the NYSC.
“We have been doing it all these years but now we want it bigger for greater impact and greater benefit of the inmates and in turn the larger society.
“We will also need more health professionals and psychologists to man our health and psychology lab facilities in our custodian centres as well,’’ he said.