NYSC Denies Content Of Its Handbook Asking Corps Member To Prepare Ransom While Travelling On High-Risk Roads

Management of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has denied a section of its handbook on security, advising serving corps members to prepare money for ransom if they get abducted while travelling on high-risk roads.

The handbook is titled, Security Awareness and Education Handbook For Corps Members and Staff.

On page 56 of the handbook, as seen by MDB, NYSC advised corps members travelling on “high-risk” roads to alert their “family members, friends and colleagues to have someone on hand to pay off the ransom that could be demanded” in case they are kidnapped.

Read Also: NYSC Asks Corps Members To Get Someone Ready To Pay Ransom While Traveling On High Risk Roads

The Scheme listed such roads as “Abuja-Kaduna, Abuja-Lokoja-Okene, or Aba-Port Harcourt” roads.

Also, page 57 of the handbook taught corps members on how to conduct themselves when kidnapped.

The section titled, ‘Advisory Action When Kidnapped Or Taken Hostage’ partly reads;

Do not antagonize your captors, be polite and operate with reasonable regards. Give reasonable cooperation to your abductors.

Established personal relationship with your abductors as soon as possible.

The kidnappers may ask for contact persons, do not mention your place of work, but your close friends and parents. They will reach them to negotiate for your release.

Advise your friends involved in the negotiations, they should be friendly with the captors.

Take no risk by attempting to escape. DO NOT BE A HERO.

Make no statement to the media after your release without official clearance but share your experience with close associates.

However, in a rebuttal shared on its social media handles, NYSC management denied giving the advice, despite corps member having a copy of the handbook.

NYSC in its rebuttal stated that the clause quoted is not embedded in NYSC Security Tips pamphlet, which was allegedly put together by “a highly respected retired security expert.”

However, the handbook was handed to corps members serving in different parts of the country during their orientation exercise on camp.

The rebuttal reads;

The attention of Management of the National Youth Sevice Corps has been drawn to a fake release making the rounds on the social media to the effect that Corps Members travelling on “high risk roads” should alert their families, friends and colleagues in order to have somebody to pay off the ransom that could be demanded in the event of being kidnapped.

Management wishes to emphatically state that the clause quoted is not embedded in NYSC Security Tips pamphlet which was put together by a highly respected retired security expert.

Management wishes to appeal to the general public to always clarify issues with the Scheme. Please, be wary of falling prey to the antics of mischief makers out to ridicule the Scheme.

Management shall continue to prioritise the security and welfare of Corps Members and staff at all times.

Management.

In recent months, the Abuja-Kaduna, Abuja-Lokoja-Okene and Aba-Port-Harcourt roads have witnessed an unprecedented spate of kidnapping as rampaging bandits waylay travellers, taking them hostages in exchange for ransom.

Students have been the most affected by the menacing activities of the unscrupulous elements, with parents of corps members kicking against the posting of their wards to the bandits-ravaged zones.

However despite their objection, thousands of the fresh graduates are still being posted to the so-called high-risk zone by the NYSC.

A number of corpers have been kidnapped in recent months. The rate of kidnapping on major roads have forced many corps members to abandon road transportation and opt for air transportation to connect their base to their states of posting which is usually outside their geopolitical zone.

Aside from the kidnapping of students and corpers, hundreds of Nigerians have also fallen victims to kidnappers in recent times. While some get released after payment of ransom, others are raped and killed even even after receiving millions of Naira as ransom.