FAKE NEWS: NYSC DEBURNKS VIRAL STORY CLAIMING TORTURE OF ZAMFARA CORPS MEMBER

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The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has denied a viral story narrating that a teaching corps member was brutally assaulted in the Kaura Namoda LGA of Zamfara for disciplining the child of a wealthy local.

A story describing how a corps member was beaten, tortured, and left in severe physical and mental distress circulated on WhatsApp.

The story, accompanied by a gory photo showing a man with a scalded, scarred, and bleeding torso, claimed that one Micheal Uwakwe who teaches at “Nasara Standard Academy” in Gusau, was brutally attacked by the wealthiest man in the area and his associates.

It claimed that the supposed corps member had disciplined a student who was the ward of this affluent man.

The story narrated that Uwakwe was assaulted and taken to the police station where officers influenced by bribes continued the abuse.

The author called for justice from the state government, the NYSC, and security agencies, urging readers to spread the word.

WhatsApp tagged the story with a warning to show that it had been “forwarded many times”.

Eddy Megwa, NYSC’s public relations director, released a statement on Friday describing the story as fabricated and false.

He said the fake story first hit the media on March 8, 2017, at which time the scheme had dismissed it as false.

“The NYSC Management strongly condemned the damaging story in its entirety, because there was no report of such an incident involving any of our corps members across the country,” Megwa said.

“The claim by the writer of the story is nothing but a reckless assemblage of ill-intentioned, unguarded, and unprofessional reportage.

“The NYSC, as a responsible and youth-friendly government establishment, places a high priority on the welfare and security of its corps members in their places of primary assignment and host communities.

“This has been the tradition of the scheme for the past fifty-one years of its existence.”

Megwa asked guardians, serving/prospective corps members, and the general public to ignore the “ill-conceived” publication.