Frustration mounts among parents and prospective corps members as technical glitches and alleged network failures plague the National Youth Service Corps registration process, leaving many unable to complete their enrollment before the deadline.
Registration Deadline Chaos
The NYSC registration period which commenced on November 4, 2025 was scheduled to conclude on Sunday, November 9, 2025. However, numerous prospective corps members found themselves stranded as the registration portal experienced persistent failures throughout the closing date.
According to affected individuals and officials, the portal became inaccessible at midnight and remained down until approximately 3am, creating a window of technical impossibility for last-minute registrations. This network failure was not isolated to Abuja alone but affected multiple states including Lagos, Akwa Ibom, Abia, Sokoto and several others simultaneously.
Parents Voice Their Anguish
Mrs Akinwumi Adebanjo, whose daughter Veronica hopes to serve in Abuja, expressed her frustration at the situation. She revealed that her child's registration had been repeatedly delayed by NYSC officials until the final registration date, forcing them to seek alternative solutions.
"As I and my children could not register at home, we went to a business centre and paid N12,000 while others in different centres paid N18,000," Mrs Adebanjo lamented. "How many families can afford that as you know that many parents are as poor as pepper sellers?"
She strongly challenged NYSC's claim of having registered 18,000 candidates, questioning the validity of these numbers given the widespread registration difficulties observed across various centers.
International Students Bear Heavy Burden
Investigations reveal that a significant number of the affected prospective corps members are international students who studied abroad. These individuals made substantial financial sacrifices to return to Nigeria specifically for their national service year.
"These candidates include international students, I mean students in Diaspora," one concerned parent noted. "How can they pay such huge amount to fly into the country to serve their father's land, leaving everything, including their lucrative jobs, just to be messed up in their own country?"
The situation raises serious questions about the treatment of diaspora students who demonstrate patriotism by returning home to serve, only to encounter systemic failures that jeopardize their participation.
Growing Calls for Systemic Reform
The recurring technical issues have sparked outrage among parents, with many questioning the management competence of the NYSC scheme. Mr. Musa Jimoh, one of the concerned parents, highlighted additional risks faced by corps members beyond registration challenges.
"Children are risking their lives going up and down as many died on the process," Jimoh lamented. "Some are being kidnapped in the so-called service to their fatherland. This happens especially to the less privileged families."
Many parents report that some NYSC candidates graduated two to three years ago but remain unable to complete their service year due to alleged corrupt practices within the system. This has led to increasing demands for either comprehensive reform or complete scrapping of the program if management deficiencies cannot be addressed.
The consensus among affected families is that the NYSC scheme requires urgent technological upgrades and administrative overhaul to prevent future generations from experiencing similar frustrations during what should be a seamless transition to national service.
