News
FG Fails to Pay ₦77,000 NYSC Allowance, Corps Members Still Receive ₦33,000
Despite assurances from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) that corps members’ monthly allowances would increase to ₦77,000 starting February 2025, the Federal Government has continued to pay the previous ₦33,000 stipend.
Multiple corps members reported receiving their February allowance on Friday night, only to find it unchanged at ₦33,000—less than half of the promised amount.
This contradicts the statements made in January by NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Yushau Ahmed, who had publicly announced that the allowance increment was approved and would commence once the 2025 budget was passed.
He had assured corps members that by February, they would start receiving ₦77,000. As of now, the Federal Government has not provided any official explanation for the failure to implement the increase.
With Nigeria’s inflation rate soaring and the cost of living rising, the ₦33,000 allowance is increasingly insufficient for corps members to meet their basic needs, including food, transportation, and accommodation.
A corps member serving in Oyo expressed disappointment, saying, “How do they expect us to survive on ₦33,000 when everything is expensive? They told us we would get ₦77,000 this month, and now they have failed again.”
Another corps member in Kano lamented that the delay in the allowance increment is yet another example of the government’s insensitivity to the struggles of young Nigerians. “We are serving our country, yet we cannot even afford decent meals.
The government knows that ₦33,000 is not enough, but they don’t care. They keep making empty promises while we suffer,” she said.
News
“You Can Still Have Subsidy Without Long Queues” — Rufai Oseni Speaks On Subsidy
TV anchor Rufai Oseni makes headlines as he speaks on fuel subsidy in Nigeria. He shared that Nigeria can have fuel subsidy without the long queues at filling stations.
“When we were still paying subsidies, there were no long queues. We were subsidising. So you can still have a subsidy regime going on, and there will be no long queues because production was close by. Dangote had it. That’s just it. That argument also falls flat.
“The biggest beneficiaries of subsidy are not Nigerians. They are crony capitalists that have big infrastructure, and they do contracts. They have been the biggest beneficiaries of the subsidy,” he said.
News
Sanwo-Olu Speaks on Lagos’ Power Challenges and the Need for Change
Lagos State Governor, Sanwo-Olu, speaks to those in the electricity sector about the usual blackouts in the state.
He speaks on ways things can change in the state and how electricity can be provided.
“We need to drop corporate egos, abandon long-standing excuses, and confront the harsh realities obstructing progress in the power sector.”
“We, state governments, used to give excuses that everything is centralised, so the Federal Government has unbundled it now. What have we done in a year and a half?” Sanwo-Olu asked.
“We take two steps forward, we go five steps backward,” he said.
News
Sanwo-Olu Declares August 20 Public Holiday in Lagos for Isese Festival
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has declared Thursday, August 20, a work-free day for public servants in the state to mark the Isese Festival.
Speaking on the celebration, he said “Ìṣẹ̀ṣe is not a relic. It is a living expression of our traditions and a celebration of Yoruba spirituality as an important part of Nigeria’s cultural and religious landscape,” he said.
He added “When the drums sound in Lagos on Thursday, they answer drums in Havana, in Salvador, in Port of Spain. Fifty-five million people and counting. Lagos is not observing a local holiday. Lagos is standing at the centre of a global heritage,” Aregbe said.
