Former Head of State and founding father of the National Youth Service Corps, General Yakubu Gowon, has commended the scheme’s managers for upholding the vision that led to its establishment over five decades ago.

General Gowon made the remarks during a courtesy visit by the newly appointed NYSC Director General, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, at his residence in Asokoro, Abuja.

In a statement signed by the Acting Director, Information and Public Relations of the NYSC, Caroline Embu, on Wednesday, Gowon acknowledged the initial resistance the NYSC faced from Nigerian students at its inception in 1973.

However, he noted that the NYSC had since evolved into a nationally recognized platform, promoting unity, integration, job creation, and youth empowerment across the country.

“The former head of State and founding father of the National Youth Service Corps, General Yakubu Gowon GCFR, has commended the managers of the Scheme for sustaining the vision that informed the establishment of NYSC.

“

He said the NYSC was greeted with strong opposition from Nigerian students across the country at inception, had not only overcome the initial misgivings but had grown to become a nationally recognised and accepted tool for fostering national unity, integration, development, job creation, and youth empowerment in Nigeria.

“He acknowledged the multi-dimensional contributions of Corps Members to national development over the 50 years of the Scheme’s existence.

“He further praised the deployment policy of NYSC, which exposes Corps Members to the various peoples and cultures of Nigeria, by posting them to States and geographical locations other than their own,” the statement partly read.

He urged Brigadier General Nafiu to build on the legacies of his predecessors and take the scheme to greater heights.

In response, Brigadier General Nafiu described the NYSC as “a divine project that has been of significant blessing to the country,” while expressing appreciation for General Gowon’s continued support and sought his mentorship as he leads the scheme.

The Federal Capital Territory Minister, Chief Nyesom Wike, has won the Thisday Newspaper and Arise News Minister of the Year Award for 2024.

The minister was accompanied by his wife, Hon. Justice Eberechi Nyesom Wike, his G-5 friends, past and present senators, some members of Rivers State House of Assembly, heavyweight Rivers politicians and others.

Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, has indeed promised to allocate land in Abuja for the University of Port Harcourt’s Centre for Leadership and Political Studies.

This centre is envisioned as a Nigerian counterpart to the John F. Kennedy Leadership Center in the United States.

During a meeting with the university’s Governing Council, led by Pro-Chancellor Sen. Mao Ohuabunwa, Wike pledged to provide the necessary land, but clarified that he won’t be using FCT funds for the centre’s construction.

Interestingly, Wike also promised to personally contribute ₦350 million towards building a state-of-the-art multimedia centre at the university’s Convocation Arena, which he had previously built during his tenure as Governor of Rivers State