Regina Illuebbey, the State Coordinator of the National Youth Services Corps in Ebonyi State, has urged the state authorities to relocate the School for the Deaf, Afikpo from the Orientation Camp.
Illuebbey made the call on Tuesday during the visit of the NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Suleiman Kazaure, who came to observe 2017 Batch ‘A’, Stream II orientation programme.
She said the location of both the camp and the school within the premises of MacGregor College, Afikpo, was not convenient.
According to her, the development is one of the major problems confronting the orientation programme.
The deaf community, she said, inconveniences the corps members.
Illuebbey said: “The deaf community members vandalize our property and even run their own administration within the camp.
“We call on relevant authorities to immediately relocate the deaf community, to avoid unnecessary distraction within the orientation camp.”
The state coordinator decried the low participation of females in the orientation programme.
She said: “We registered a total of 1,884 Corps members for the orientation programme comprising of 1,712 males and 172 females.
“It is regrettable to announce that out of the 172 females, 54 of them are pregnant and have left the camp immediately on instant relocation or for their homes in the state.”
Furthermore, she complained about the dilapidated infrastructure in the camp.
The NYSC, she said, carries out minor repairs and patching of the structures and roofs.
On the activities, she said that physical and skill acquisition programmes had commenced in earnest.
Kazuare, in his response, congratulated the corps members for the successful completion of their academic pursuits and urged them to work toward ensuring the nation’s unity.
He said: “I urge you to inter-marry to ensure regional integration.
“The camp environment is regimented and I urge you to bear the discomfort you are presently experiencing because it will last for 21 days.”
He urged the corps members to pay special attention to the empowerment training programmes designed to enable them to become self-reliant at the end of the service year.
Kazuare said: “I urge you to shun the lure of acquiring riches, crimes such as kidnapping and unnecessary journeys.
“You should and move in groups as a security measure.”
The director-general inspected facilities inside the camp, held interactive sessions with the corps members and was entertained by the NYSC cultural troupe.