The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has reviewed its policy on verifying fitness of Prospective Corps Members (PCMs) for orientation course, and has now scrapped the presentation of a medical fitness certificate by PCMs.
CAMPUS GIST reports that, before now, the NYSC mandates every prospective corps member to submit a medical fitness certificate on arrival at camp for the three-weeks orientation course.
The essence, it was gathered, was to enable camp officials identify and manage corps members who are not fit to undertake certain activities in camp, in view of the regimentation and physical demands of some of the orientation course’s activities.
The scheme also grants corps members with certain illnesses the concession to relocate to another state, on medical ground.
But, according to NYSC, the initiative has been largely misunderstood, leading to extortion of some prospective corps members by fraudulent individuals in a bid to secure such documents “some of which may not stand a test of integrity.”
In a statement on Monday, made available to CAMPUS GIST, the NYSC said henceforth, corps members will now undergo a compulsory fitness test at the Scheme’s Clinic at orientation camps with effect from the 2022 Batch ‘C’ Orientation Course.
“It is pertinent to note that the NYSC Orientation Camp Clinics across the nation are managed by the National Health Insurance Authority with the supervision of Consultants from tertiary health institution,” the statement signed by the NYSC Director, Press and Public Relations, Eddy Megwa, added.
