Amid widespread criticism over the inhuman hostel accommodation provided by the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation camp in Sagamu, Ogun State after a viral video showed corps members sleeping in cramped conditions inside a hall, the government agency has kept mum on the issue.
As tongues keep wagging on the issue, LEADERSHIP efforts to get the NYSC Director of Information and Public Relations, Caroline Embu to respond to the development has not been successful as calls and text messages sent to her mobile phone had yet to be replied as of the time of filing this report.
Observers who spoke with LEADERSHIP at separate interviews say keeping mum could mean admittance of the accusations, saying the video which emerged showing corps members packed inside the camp’s multipurpose hall, with mattresses placed close together on the floor could not have been doctored.
A public Affair analyst, Christian Mojers said, ‘’NYSC should have just emulated JAMB and tender public apology and fix the orientation camp rather keeping silent over the matter.’’
Prior to the viral video, LEADERSHIP had also gathered that the NYSC officials at the camp in Sagamu had earlier told some of the prospective corps members to return to their parents’ home due to the non-availability of accommodation space.
Meanwhile, the Ogun State Government has attributed the overcrowding at the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Permanent Orientation Camp in Sagamu to a sharp increase in the number of prospective corps members deployed to the state, including graduates redirected from neighbouring states.
The government explained the posting of more than 4,000 graduates for the 2026 Batch C, Stream II orientation exercise had put considerable pressure on the camp’s accommodation facilities, which ordinarily cater for slightly over 2,000 corps members per batch.
For the current 2026 Batch C, Stream II exercise, the Ogun State NYSC Coordinator, Mrs Frances Omolabake Adewuyi, reported that a total of 4,152 Prospective Corps Members was registered for the 2026 Batch C stream 2 orientation exercise. Of this number, Ogun State registered 3,698 Prospective Corps Members, comprising 1,460 males and 2,238 females.
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In addition, 454 dislodged Corps Members from Lagos State, comprising 171 males and 283 females, also registered and are currently participating in this orientation course.
The explanation was informed by the circulation of a viral video showing prospective corps members sleeping in a crowded multipurpose hall at the Sagamu camp, popularly known as the Five-Star Camp, triggering public concerns about their welfare, accommodation and safety.
The ugly situation has also brought renewed attention to Ogun’s growing importance as an alternative orientation destination for prospective corps members initially posted to neighbouring states, particularly Lagos, whose orientation facilities have struggled to accommodate their increasing numbers over the years .
Previous records of NYSC deployments showed that Ogun has, over the years, accommodated graduates redirected from Lagos and other neighbouring states because of limitations in their orientation camp capacity.
During the 2022 Batch C, Stream I orientation exercise, it was gathered that 2,194 of the 4,486 corps members posted to Lagos State were transferred to neighbouring South-West states for orientation.
Of the displaced graduates, 749 were accommodated in Ogun, while 734 were sent to Oyo and 711 to Osun State.
To this end the Lagos State NYSC Coordinator, Mrs Yetunde Baderinwa then attributed the transfers to limited accommodation at the state’s temporary orientation camp in Iyana-Ipaja.
