SERVE WITH DISCIPLINE, BUILD NIGERIA WITH PURPOSE, FCT MINISTER OF STATE CHARGES CORPS MEMBERS.

By: Darlington Omotoso & Obed Sambe.

The Honourable Minister of State, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Dr. Mariya Mahmoud, has urged members of the 2026 Batch ‘A’ Stream 1 of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to approach their national service with discipline, patriotism, and a deep sense of responsibility to Nigeria.

The charge was delivered on her behalf by the Mandate Secretary of the FCT Youth and Sports Development Secretariat and the Chairman of the NYSC FCT Governing Board, Alhaji Lawan Kolo Geidam, at the closing ceremony of the orientation course held on Tuesday, 10 February 2026, at the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp, Kubwa, Abuja.

The Minister commended the corps members for the discipline and dedication displayed during the orientation exercise and encouraged them to take full advantage of the Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme, particularly the post-camp phase, as a means of reducing post-service unemployment and promoting self-reliance.

She advised the corps members to maintain peaceful and development-focused relationships with their host communities, reassuring them of the FCT Administration’s commitment to the security of lives and property. While urging caution and responsible conduct, she described FCT residents as warm and accommodating.

“As you all proceed to your places of primary assignment across the FCT, I urge you to maintain peaceful, respectful, and development-oriented relationships with host communities. Let me emphasize that such conduct had, in the past, enabled corps members to leave lasting socio-economic footprints in both rural and urban areas of the Territory,” she said.

Dr. Mahmoud also charged the corps members, as emerging leaders, to channel their talents toward nation-building, unity, and sustainable development, urging them to accept their postings in good faith and settle quickly at their places of primary assignment.

Earlier, the NYSC FCT Coordinator, Mr. Samson Ateli, thanked the FCT Administration for its continuous support to the Scheme and disclosed that corps members were posted across the six Area Councils of the FCT in line with NYSC policy and areas of specialization. He urged corps employers to utilize the corps members judiciously and encouraged the corps members to actively participate in Community Development Service (CDS) and SAED activities.

The ceremony climaxed with the formal declaration of the 2026 Batch ‘A’ Stream 1 Orientation Course closed, as corps members departed the camp with renewed commitment to service, unity, and national development.