Corps Members Groans, Voice Disappointment at N33,000 September Allowance

Before he left for the NYSC programme, Sylvester Peter* worked at a bakery where he earned a considerable monthly salary to meet his financial needs. As a first-born child from a low-earning family, Peter supported his family with his monthly earnings and funded his educational endeavour until he bagged a Higher National Diploma (HND) at Kwara State Polytechnic.

After his graduation, the thought of the NYSC programme raced in his mind - a decision to make for many graduates in Nigeria.

With anticipation, Peter registered for the one-year NYSC scheme. But he soon started experiencing privations after he left his bakery work for N33,000 monthly allowances.

"With the meagre N33,000 monthly allowances being paid by the federal government, I struggle to afford basic necessities such as food, transportation to my Community Development Service (CDS) and [place of] primary assignment, mobile phone subscriptions and other unexpected costs that arise throughout the month," Peter told FIJ.

Jimoh Ayuba is another corp member with an experience similar to Peter's. With no means of generating income, since he had left for NYSC, he solely depended on the N33,000 monthly remuneration from the government. The overpriced goods and commodities in his community of primary assignment compounded his plights.

"Being a student neighbourhood, items sold here are quite luxurious. The locals hike prices immediately they know you are a stranger," Ayuba said.

"Financial instability is a common issue encountered by corps members because the majority of us depend on this federal government remit and there is no other way to generate income. Receiving N33,000 at the end of the month in this kind of crippling economy is quite devastating and awkward."
Corps members. NYSC.
According to a report published by UNICEF, high inflation is frustrating the economic recovery and eroding the purchasing power of the most vulnerable households in Nigeria. At a projected 17% in 2021, inflation in Nigeria ranked seventh highest in sub-Saharan Africa. Moreover, in the last two years, surging domestic food prices accounted for almost 70% of the total inflation which disproportionately affects households in poverty and at risk of falling into poverty.

Similarly, Nigeria's inflation has been higher than the average for African and Sub-Saharan countries for years. It exceeded 16% in 2017 - a real and significant decrease is nowhere in sight. Hence, an inflation rate that is bouncing all over the place, like this one, is usually a sign of a struggling economy, causing prices to fluctuate, and pushing more people into unemployment and poverty.

Nigeria's former president Muhammadu Buhari increased the corps members' allowance from N19,800 to N33,000 in January 2020 after several agitations.

To address the effect of the economic downturn on the NYSC members, recall that Caroline Embu, the Acting Director of Information and Public Relations of NYSC, later in September announced that the federal government had approved a hike of corps members allowance from N33,000 to N77,000. The decision was made in a bid to align with the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024.

With the new NYSC allowances, effective from July, corps members will receive an additional #44,000 per month. This was supposed to bring corps members much-needed financial relief amidst rising living costs and inflation.
FAILED PROMISE, BROKEN HOPE
Gripped with excitement when the government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced the increment of the NYSC monthly allowance from N33,000 to N77,000 - a decision to accommodate corps members in the approved new minimum wage scheme. Peter subsequently felt disappointed and frustrated when he received N33,000 instead of the N77,000 as promised in September.

He told FIJ that the failed promise caused him a lot of inconveniences, and financial difficulties because he had planned his budgets around the expected increment. He further added that he was struggling to reschedule his plans to meet the end results.

"Surviving on the current allowance is challenging. I need to cut my expenses, and it has impacted my ability to support my family and even myself, most especially with the daring hike of foodstuffs and transportation fees," Peter said.

"The rising cost of fuel has caused a domino effect on the cost of basic necessities, making it difficult to make ends meet. A significant portion of my allowance goes to transportation to my primary place of assignment, leaving little for food and other expenses."

Like Peter, Shehu Balarabe enjoyed a cloud-nine mood when he heard the news of the increment, highlighting the veracity and extension of the news to his family and other corps members who reached out to rejoice with them.

Initially, he refused to speak with this reporter until he was promised anonymity due to a threat of animosity posted to their corps WhatsApp discussion group - a measure to keep people silent, keeping them away from the media.
Corps members complaining in a WhatsApp group chat. PHOTO CREDIT: Muheeb Mashood

At first, Balarabe regarded the payment of N33,000 in September as a fantasy despite the rumours until he started seeing screenshots of the payment. Then, he received his own.

At that point, he was left with nothing but a bag full of disappointment.

"Nothing really except disappointment. I have hoped for a better and little convenient life ahead of receiving the N77,000 allowance," Balarabe told FIJ.

"At first, we thought the rumours were untrue. We have decided to move on with our existing life of N33,000 till the increment is implemented. We are used to the life of N33,000 allowances. So it is not really hard to survive, we just hope the life of corp members will be easier upon implementation of the N77,000 allowance."

CROSSROADS AND DILEMMA
While the majority of the corps members survived on the monthly commission despite its hand-to-mouth nature, Sanni Kareem failed to bother himself to receive the wages after he realised it only lasted him for three days. He noted that the last time he received the allowance was in June; he had stopped going for his clearance since then, and the rule is "no clearance, no payment".

"When they (the FG) announced the increment from N33,000 to N77,000, as a human being, everyone felt happy. People awaited and planned their budget based on the promised increment," Kareem stated.

"The failed promise has a devastating effect on the people except for those who have other sources of income because their expectation is not based on the allowance."
WHY CORPERS RECEIVED OLD PAYMENT
Recall FIJ earlier reported that Yushau Ahmed, the Director General of the NYSC, during an interview with BBC Hausa on Saturday, mentioned that the newly approved payment scheme failed to be implemented starting from September as promised due to the failure of the FG to release funds to execute the payment.

He also disclosed that the FG had increased the salaries of the NYSC staff members about five months ago.

The NYSC members and staff await the new wage implementation.

* Corps members' names were changed on grounds of source safety.