My NYSC experience
Name: John Eli Ogah
State of Deployment: Taraba
Batch: 2018 Batch ‘C’ Stream 1
PPA: Kwararafa University in Wukari local
My name is John, Eli Ogah. I am a 2018 Batch ‘C’ Stream 1, serving corps member deploy to Taraba state. My Place of Primary Assignment (PPA) is Kwararafa University in Wukari local government.
In this article I intent to share with you my experience as a serving corp member in Taraba state (Nature gift to the nation). Let me begin from the orientation camp where it all begin. After the stress and the anxiety of registration and waiting to see where I will be deploy to, I finally got my called up later and I was posted to Taraba state, for me it was a mixed feeling of joy; joy of having the opportunity to serve my fatherland and that of meeting new people from far and near cutting across different ethnic, religion and education background. And then the fear; fear of unknown. But I think my joy elucidated my fear. Some without hesitation I set out on a journey that was going to be a thirteen hour journey (From Jos were I school to Jalingo) I most confess that it was one of the longest and rough journey I have ever embarked on. All thanks to Otondo.com.ng (a website which information about NYSC can easily be access) for advising PCM to travel a day before the start of the orientation course. I arrived Sibre orientation camp and the beautiful outlook of the camp left me basking in a state of Euphoria. Fast forward to the evening of the opening day been 23 September, 2018.
I was appointed by the soldiers to be the flag party commander in preparation to our swearing-in as corp members properly.
The opportunity to serve as a flag party commander and later as right hand maker left me with experiences and it help further instilling in selflessness and self discipline in me. I really love and missed everything in the camp. From the sound of the bugle, to the parade/ meditation, mammy market, NCCF fellowship and time and space will not allow me to tell you about my crazy roommates turn friends: Tare, Martins, Ola, Obi, Nonso, SAED and Mike those guys are wonderful.
End of Orientation camp, time to move.
After the 21 days ‘ritual’ it was time to break rank and move to our various PPA I most tell you this is one of the emotional moment I have ever witnessed in my life.
I can’t forget how hard it was looking at Miye my good friend an Ijaw lady face because of the emotion and the thought of never seeing her again (she was posted to Donga LGC). Nonetheless, I collected my letter I was posted to Wukari, a Jukun settlement and the second largest LG in Taraba. My PPA is Kwararafa university, the only community based university is sub-sahara. I serve as GIS lab assistant and as secretary to HOD geography department. Least I forget I graduated from the prestigious University of Jos were a obtained B.Sc (Hons) in Geology And Mining. My experience so far here has been wonderful. The people here are very friendly and the have high regard for Corp members.
In conclusion, I want to say categorical without fear or doubt that the NYSC scheme is the best thing that have happened to this country, it may have it peculiar challenges which is common to every scheme. NYSC is not a scam! It is a platform that is able to bring us from far and near to build fatherland.
About my PPA and the Jukun people. As I earlier mentioned, Kwararafa university is a community based university one of it kind in Nigeria. The community in it quest for formal education, established the university in 2005 with the sole aim to make education available to the younger generation and alleviate the stress and pain of seeking for admission into the highest citadel of education in the country and my experience serving in such institutions have been wonderful. It provide me with an apple opportunity to meet and interact with the
Students and the academy and the none academy staff. I won’t forget our first interaction with the registrar of the school all thanks to the head of my department, Mr Kinhede O. T. Now about the Jukun people; the Jukun people are part of the famous Kwararafa kingdom which host a lot of the tribes in Nigeria during the precolonial era, prominent among this tribe are the Idoma people of Benue, Igala of Kogi, The Alago people of Nasarawa and a lot of others. The kingdom happened to be one of the largest before it disintegration. The Jukun people are accommodating to us are very friendly, you hardly pass on the road without hearing word like “Corper wee” “Corper shun” from both the children and their parents. Least I forget, the have a lot of fish here and I have a lot of them in my kitchen which I got free of charge. I can go on and on but let me stop here!