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 Youths under his watch would be given priority during and after the forthcoming general elections.
The INEC Chairman gave the assurance on Thursday during a courtesy visit by the DG, NYSC to his office in Abuja.
Checks revealed that the electoral umpire had since signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the leadership of the NYSC for the deployment of graduates on the mandatory one-year national service as ad-hoc staff during the general elections.
Professor Yakubu disclosed that aside from providing security for the youths to be deployed to work at Polling Units, his Commission in collaboration with the security agencies is also showing more than passing interest in their security while at the various NYSC camps across the country.
He said: “No electoral Commission anywhere in the world, conducts election on the strength of its own regular staff. For us in INEC, we are lucky to have this large pool of those on national service to complement us.
” We are concerned about the comfort, safety and security of the Corps members. We will continue to make them comfortable ahead of their deployment to Polling Units.
“We will even extend security to the NYSC camps as well.
“You have asked about their safety after the elections. I have emphasized to the leadership of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, (NURTW) that Corps members must not be abandoned after the election but brought back to base after the election.
“On training, we are training them in camp, so that by the time they are deployed they are already trained. I want to assure that before they leave camp, those in Enugu and Kano would have been trained before February 14.
“We will work together to train them ahead of their deployment. We will keep to the MOU we signed with NYSC. We are like Siamese twins and we will continue to work together.
“Be assured that the security of the Corpers will be given priority, we are also concerned. It is a call to duty.”
Earlier in his remarks, Brigadier Ahmed assured the INEC Chairman that his agency “will work tirelessly to ensure that all the terms and conditions of MOU are met.
“We are already sensitising those on national service to allay their fears. It is an assignment they should be proud to carry out. I know you are talking day and night to talk to security chiefs, to ensure security of corps members.”
