The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) on Monday said it appreciated the cooperation extended to it by the media.
The sentiment was expressed by the Corps’ Director of Press and Public Relations, Abosede Aderibigbe, during a farewell press briefing in Abuja.
Mrs. Aderibigbe urged the media in the country to ensure balanced reporting of stories related to scheme in order to sustain it.
The NYSC spokesperson is retiring from civil service after putting in 35 years of meritorious service.
The briefing which was held at the press office at the NYSC headquarters and was attended by correspondents of media houses across the country attend, was the final task organised by Mrs. Aderibigbe.
She enjoined journalists covering the scheme to continue to do their jobs with an obsession for balance, integrity, and excellence.
“I want to ask you individually and collectively, to please ensure that reports concerning the scheme be balanced so as not to cause confusion and misinformation,” she said.
Mrs. Abosede, who is handing over to her deputy, Peter Alitola, urged the journalists to accord her successor the cooperation she got while serving the scheme.
She also expressed appreciation to the NYSC Director General, Suleiman Kazaure, for his leadership and support over the years.
The outgoing director also decried the alarming rate of individuals and groups calling for the youth service scheme to be scrapped.
“Even as of yesterday, people in the press were still calling for NYSC to be scrapped. Some called for it not to be scrapped but to be improved upon, but for me, I know that NYSC has come to stay,” she remarked.
“I got my job immediately after NYSC. The scheme has really helped Nigerians over the years. I am grateful to God I am now at the pinnacle< of my career and I have come to see the end of my service to the nation.”
Mrs. Abosede oversaw the press and public relations office of the scheme during the very controversial deaths of a number of prospective corps members in orientation camps of the Batch B, Stream I Orientation exercise of 2016.
