News
Terrible President Comment: NYSC Denies Extending Raye’s Service Year, Says Corper Still Serving
The National Youth Service Corps has denied extending the service year of a Lagos corper, Rita Uguamaye, also known as Raye, for criticising the administration of President Bola Tinubu.
When contacted on Tuesday by The Punch, the acting NYSC Director, Press and Public Relations, Carol Embu, said the decision to extend a corps member’s service year is made when such a person is passing out.
She disclosed that there are guidelines that would be followed if such an action were to be taken.
“Who is Sowore? Does he work with the NYSC? So, how come you are listening to him? I don’t understand how she will get an extension if she is still serving.
“NYSC is not an irresponsible organisation; we work with rules and regulations. She is still serving; if she has any issues, we will wait and see,” Embu said.
Meanwhile, the source could not independently verify the claim of service year extension from Uguamaye, and she did not also make any post on such claim on her social media handles.
Uguamaye had, in a viral video shared on her TikTok account, @talktoraye, expressed frustration over Nigeria’s worsening economic conditions, lamenting the high inflation and economic hardship.
Uguamaye had also criticised the President by describing him as a “terrible leader” while questioning the government’s efforts to alleviate the hardship faced by the citizens.
Additionally, she stressed that Lagos State is a “smelling state” and lamented its “poor living conditions.”
After the video had gone viral, Uguamaye posted another video on her TikTok to alert the public that she was allegedly being threatened by the NYSC authorities, a claim which was not commented on by the authority.
She claimed that some officials of the NYSC were asking her to delete the video, while she insisted that she had only spoken the truth about the country’s situation.
Sharing a news caption on Tuesday that read, “NYSC punitively extends Raye’s service year by 2 months for criticising Tinubu’s administration over hardship”, Sowore vowed to protest at the NYSC passing out parade.
Sowore wrote, “This Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu regime might go down with Rita Raye’s National Youth Service Corps matter.”
“This is not acceptable, we will mobilise down to the Passing Out Parade except Rita is allowed to complete her NYSC national service without let or hindrance.”
The Punch
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has re-instated Senator Samuel Anyanwu as its National Secretary following its meeting with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday.
The party has also postponed its planned National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting scheduled for June 30. Instead, the planned meeting will be an enlarged caucus.
Acting National Chairman of the party, Umar Damagun, announced the reinstatement at a news conference in Abuja.
“Anyanwu is resuming as the national secretary,” Damagum said.
“At the next caucus, we will make a decision leading to a proper NEC. Like INEC said, they don’t have our notice, so we will have an extended caucus meeting on June 30,” Damagun added.
The conference was attended by the chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, Bala Mohammed, and the former Senate President, Bukola Saraki.
The decision to reinstate the national secretary of the party followed Tuesday’s meeting with the INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, who explained why the commission cannot honour the invitation for the planned NEC meeting
INEC had turned down an invitation to the 100th NEC meeting of the PDP, citing the secretaryship tussle and how it has led to inconsistencies in signatures, contrary to the electoral body’s guidelines for political parties.
The police in Bayelsa State, on Sunday, confirmed the abduction of Justice E.J. Umokoro in Yenagoa, the capital.
Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the command, DSP Musa Mohammed, confirmed the alleged kidnap of the Judge on Sunday in Yenagoa.
“Umokoro, a judge at Bayelsa State High Court was on Saturday evening abducted from his car at a fast food outlet at Ekeki area of Yenagoa.
“The command has deployed tactical teams and drones to trail and arrest the hoodlums,” he said.
Reports said that the gunmen fired sporadically at the car park of the eatery before forcing the judge out of his vehicle and whisking him away in a waiting Toyota Hilux.
The judge was waiting for his daughter, who had gone into the outlet to make some purchases.
NAN
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
One of the greatest strengths of a rational being is the freedom to do whatever they want. That’s a fact! But one thing is sure, and that is actions have consequences. Even at creation, Adam and Eve were given instruction to eat any fruit except a particular tree, but they disobeyed, ate the forbidden fruit, and were thrown out of the garden of Eden.
This simply means that as a human being, one is responsible for his own actions and omissions. Sometimes, we blame people as being responsible for our failures and mistakes, not realizing that nobody will insult you without your permission.
I have come to the realization that choice plays a fundamental role in our lives. The way we speak, the way we write, the way we dress, and the way we live our lives are all products of our choices. Before we eat a particular meal or even wear an outfit, we choose from a list of several options. Before we serve any deity, we make a choice, and though there may be a level of external influence, we still have a role to play in the final outcome.
In recent times, I have developed the eyes of the eagle at looking at life from a vantage position. Anything I want, I strategically sit down and make strategic arrangements which will include what I need to do and what I need to deviate from. These are products of being intentional with our choices.
One of the greatest choices we’ll make as human beings is the choice of, who we will marry and how our life will become. I say this because we are the architect of our life. If you are intentional, how you live your life matters. This also entails the kind of jobs we do and the services we offer. They all define us in one way or another.
Some people are so intentional with their life that they make so much sacrifices spiritually, academically, financially, socially and even with personal development. They know what they want, and dare to go after it no matter whose ox is gored.
While they were intentional to plan their life by making sacrifices, some people are busy living their lives to the fullest and turns around to seek assistance from the person who has planned his existence. Life doesn’t work that way.
Just to let you know how decisive choice can be in the life of a progressive mind, consider President Donald Trump, who grew up to become a successful billionaire and two-term President. His brother, Fred Trump Jr., was an alcoholic who never managed to find success. It is interesting to know that they both have the same biological father and mother. They had the same upbringing, same school, but they had different outcomes. President Trump was intentional with his life and maybe his brother made a bad choice, or he was unintentional with this life.
The moral here is that we need to quit the blame game because we are the architect of our life. “Nobody” really owes us anything. Any favor we get from people is an act of gesture and not entitlement.
So, do yourself a favour, stop blaming your parents or anyone for how your life turned out! It is not your upbringing or genes that make you a success or failure. It is the choices you make in life that make or break you. You can decide to take ownership of your life and change the course of your life for the better.
There are numerous people who have transformed their lives from negative to positive. It’s all about determination and making the right choices.
The choice we make as human beings can either make or mar us. As a man, if you are mischievous in sleeping around, with different women, attending night clubs with several women, spending lavishly without being prudent, it won’t be long before poverty locates you.
Today, I charge you to sit down, and reflect on what kind of life you want to live and begin to intentionally work on it by making the right choices. I look forward to seeing you at the top.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design and Unleash Your Destiny . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
