Outrage As 4,300 Corps Members Overrun 2,000-capacity Ogun Camp

BY HENRY TYOHEMBA, Abuja AND FEMI OYEWESO, ABEOKUTA

Widespread condemnation has trailed the deplorable accommodation conditions at the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation camp in Sagamu, Ogun State, where thousands of Prospective Corps Members were reportedly forced to sleep on the floor of an overcrowded multipurpose hall after the number of graduates deployed to the state exceeded the camp’s capacity.

The situation, which has attracted widespread condemnation from parents, politicians and civil society organisations (CSOs), followed the deployment of more than 4,300 Prospective Corps Members to a facility designed to accommodate slightly over 2,000 participants per batch, LEADERSHIP gathered.

A viral video showing the graduates sleeping on mattresses arranged close together on the floor of the hall has raised concerns about their welfare, safety, sanitation, and the adequacy of facilities at the camp.

The Prospective Corps members, who reported at the Sagamu orientation camp in Ikenne Local Government Area on 4 November 2026, were seen in the footage lying in cramped conditions, with some reportedly sharing mattresses.

The multipurpose hall, ordinarily used for events, was reportedly converted into a temporary sleeping area to accommodate the influx of graduates, while the available hostel facilities struggled to cope with the numbers.

LEADERSHIP also gathered that before the video surfaced online, some Prospective Corps Members had been asked by camp officials to return to their parents’ homes due to a lack of accommodation.

The incident has since attracted condemnation from prominent Nigerians, including the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr Peter Obi, who described the conditions as disturbing and unacceptable.

In a post shared on Monday through the Peter Obi Grassroot Movement’s verified X handle, @PO_GrassrootM, Obi questioned the treatment of young Nigerians who had answered the call to national service.

He said, “This is the NYSC Orientation Camp in Shagamu, Ogun State, in 2026. Look at the conditions Nigerians are being subjected to. Is this how a country treats its own young people who have answered the call to national service?

“Even people in war-affected areas deserve better than to be subjected to such inhumane conditions. These are Nigerian youths, not animals. They deserve dignity, decent accommodation, proper sanitation and a safe environment. National service should never become an experience of suffering and humiliation.

“Nigeria must stop treating its young people as though their lives do not matter. This is shameful and unacceptable!”

Similarly, the Ogun State Chairman of the Civil Society Organisation and founder of People Against Corruption and Injustice (PACI), Barrister Bankole Solomon, called on affected corps members to institute legal action against the NYSC and the Federal Government over alleged violations of their fundamental human rights.

Solomon, a human rights advocate, argued that since participation in the scheme was a mandatory requirement for Nigerian graduates, the government had a responsibility to provide decent accommodation and protect their welfare.

He also demanded sanctions against officials found culpable, likening the overcrowded accommodation at the Sagamu camp to the detention facility of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Nasarawa State, where several alleged illegal miners reportedly died.

He said, “They can approach any of the Federal High Courts and claim that their rights have been trampled upon. NYSC is not an option to these children; it is a mandatory service they must undergo upon completion of their tertiary education.

“This simply implies that if you’re a graduate, you cannot be employed without an NYSC discharge certificate or, better still, seek to occupy any elective position in today’s democratic dispensation.

“What is currently happening to corps members in the Sagamu Orientation Camp is more than injustice; that is a manifestation of the dehumanisation of fellow human beings, and their fundamental human rights are being trampled upon.

“These are human beings, Nigerian graduates, who are being kept in conditions where you cannot even keep animals. It is pathetic and a cruelty to those children.”

Solomon blamed the situation on what he described as a wider failure of governance and disregard for human dignity, insisting that the NYSC had a responsibility to account for how the compulsory national service was being administered.

“The problem, however, is not that of the NYSC; rather, it is because Nigerian society has lost its values in every arm of governance. NYSC is a Federal Government scheme that has a working budget approved for it in every state, but see the way they are treating these victims of compulsory national service like animals,” he said.

He urged the affected graduates to approach the courts to seek redress, adding that officials responsible for the accommodation arrangement must be held accountable.

Expressing concern about the possible health implications of the overcrowding, Solomon warned that the sleeping arrangement could facilitate the spread of contagious diseases.

“See, if you look at the gory picture and the viral video, you will agree with me that if anyone among them has a disease that is contagious, he or she could have easily infected others with that kind of sleeping posture we have seen,” he said.

Solomon further likened the situation to the overcrowding at an NSCDC detention facility in Nasarawa State, where alleged illegal miners reportedly died. “Therefore, their rights have been trampled upon, and so they should sue.

“What is the difference between this condition and the eventuality that occurred in Nasarawa State, where some alleged miners died in the detention cell of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), where many souls lost their lives due to the overcrowded nature of the cell where they were kept? So these corps members would have died as well,” he said.

He called for disciplinary action against officials responsible for the situation, stressing that failure to impose sanctions would encourage similar occurrences.

Meanwhile, the Ogun State Government has attributed the overcrowding to the significant increase in the number of prospective corps members deployed to the state, while distancing itself from the management of registration and hostel allocation at the camp.

The government stated that the registration, screening, credential verification and hostel allocation of corps members were exclusively handled by NYSC officials and did not fall under its direct responsibility.

The Special Adviser on Media and Strategy to Governor Dapo Abiodun, Kayode Akinmade, said the situation captured in the viral video was a temporary arrangement during the registration exercise, which continued into the night.

Akinmade said Prospective Corps Members were required to undergo credential verification and screening by NYSC officials before being allocated hostel accommodation.

“The prospective corps members must first undergo credential verification and screening by NYSC officials before being allocated hostels. Those whose registration extended into the night were temporarily accommodated in the multipurpose hall, with mattresses provided for them to rest while the exercise continued,” he said.

He disclosed that Ogun received more than 4,300 Prospective Corps Members for the current batch, compared with slightly over 2,000 in previous batches, putting considerable pressure on the available facilities.

“The state received more than 4,300 prospective corps members for the current batch, compared with slightly over 2,000 in previous batches, increasing the pressure on available camp facilities,” Akinmade said.

He maintained that although the NYSC was responsible for managing the registration process and camp accommodation, the state government had consistently supported the agency through interventions to improve the welfare of corps members.

As part of its support, Akinmade said the state government provided 500 mattresses during the current exercise, while the Akarigbo of Remo donated 100 mattresses, followed by an additional 200.

He also recalled that Governor Abiodun had recently approved N50,000 each for the 3,050 corps members in the previous 2026 Batch C Stream I to assist with their transportation.

Akinmade further said Ogun State had been adjudged the best in the country in NYSC administration, describing the recognition as evidence of the government’s sustained commitment to supporting the scheme.

He urged members of the public to understand the distinction between the operational responsibilities of the NYSC and the supportive role of the state government, assuring them that the Abiodun administration would continue to provide assistance to make the state conducive for corps members to serve.

However, the NYSC management has yet to publicly address the concerns raised over the accommodation arrangements at the Sagamu camp.

In an earlier response to LEADERSHIP, an NYSC official, who identified herself only as Mrs Awoleye, dismissed the viral video as a rumour. “Thank God, it is a rumour, and it cannot be true. Our camp is open, and we are doing fine,” she said.

However, an enquiry by LEADERSHIP to the NYSC Director of Information and Public Relations at the National headquarters, Caroline Embu, seeking clarification on the overcrowding, the circumstances surrounding the deployment of more than 4,300 Prospective Corps Members and measures being taken to address their accommodation challenges, had also not received a response as of the time of filing this report.