- The national commandant of the Peace Corps of Nigeria, Dickson Akoh, has stated that the organization could have prevented the abduction of the Dapchigirls
- Akoh called on the president to reconsider his decision and sign the Peace Corps Bill into law; especially to ensure the social and productive engagement of the youths
- He stressed that the corps’s duties do not conflict with those of other security agencies; as captured in the bill
The Peace Corps of Nigeria (PCN) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to reconsider his position and assent to the Peace Corps Bill which was passed by the National Assembly, Independent reports.
The appeal was made by the national commandant of the corps, Dickson Akoh, at the Board of Trustees and National Executive Committee meeting which took place on Friday, March 2, in Abuja, the nations’ capital.
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NAIJ.com gathers that Akoh stated that the corps “could have prevented the abduction of the Dapchi school girls in Yobe.”
According to Akoh, this was because one of the PCN’s principal objectives was the deployment to schools and colleges to promote peace, sniff and sieve intelligence.
He stated: “We want the president to assent to the bill, if not for any reason, but for the social and productive engagement of our teeming youths in line with his campaign promises.
“The president’s withholding his assent to our bill notwithstanding, we will continue to have esteem confidence in Mr President’s leadership.”
He further stated that bill was meant to give statutory backing to the organization; and pointed out that similar organizations exist in other countries.
He stated: “In every ideal democracy and advance society, the government should seek to explore all avenues to empower and socially engage the youth in order to reduce the social consequences of their idleness.
“It is, therefore, towards this aim that I wish to restate for the umpteenth time that similar organisations like the Peace Corps exist in several other countries of the world including America, Canada, Bangladesh and so on.”
Akoh further stressed that as captured in the bill, the corps’s duties do not conflict with those of other security agencies.
In his words: “There was never a time in the history of our country that the need for peace has become fiercely urgent like now.
“The role of the Peace Corps is clearly distinct from the conventional security and para-military organisations, hence its placement under the Ministry of Sports and Youth Development.
“The powers conferred on the Nigerian Peace Corps in the bill do not also involve arms bearing, investigation, detention, and persecution.”
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Meanwhile, NAIJ.com previously reported that a presidential aspirant under the National Conscience Party (NCP), Thomas Ikugbese, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to reconsider signing of Peace Corps of Nigeria Bill into law.
He said the establishment of the Peace Corps would have facilitated employment for the teeming youths in the country.
Ikugbese, at a news conference in Akure on Friday, March 2, said signing the bill would have boosted the image of Buhari’s administration.
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Source: Naija.ng