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NYSC members making face masks for protection against coronavirus at NYSC camp, Issele-Uku, Delta state.

By Patrick Ochei

Some corps members serving in Delta State are currently at the Orientation Camp Issele-Uku, producing face masks and hand sanitizers to be donated to Issele-Uku community, Aniocha North Local Government Council and other communities within the local government area for the use of market women, palaces and placement at various strategic locations as part of their free will support in the fight against the Coronavirus pandemic.

Our correspondent was at the Orientation Camp on Friday 10th April, 2020 where the corps members were busy with the production of these materials at the Camp’s Entrepreneurship Skills Acquisition Centre.

Speaking with the State Coordinator of NYSC, Mrs. Olutayo Samuel, she commended the corps members for their high level of skills and patriotism.

She said the effort was an initiative of the Director General of NYSC, Brig. Gen. Shuaibu Ibrahim who instructed that the Scheme at various State levels should make their own contributions to the government and their host communities with a view to supporting the fight against Covid-19.

Samuel affirmed that what she did when she returned to camp to prepare it as an isolation centre in case of emergency, was also to start calling corps members who had learned the skill in making hand sanitizers and face masks to return to camp for the production of these materials.

She stated that possibly, they would finish production by Monday 13th April and then make the presentation to the Aniocha North Council Chairman, Hon. Chuks Oseme, including some to the Issele-Uku palace, Idumuje-Unor palace, markets and other communities within the local government area.

Speaking with the production team head for the face masks, Ogah Gabriel Benneth (a corps member), he said that the face masks were 100 percent pure cotton and reusable.

He added that they would be hygienically packaged to serve all purposes in the circumstance that they were being made.

Also explaining the production processes for the hand sanitizers was Akinbowale Dayo (a corps member), who claimed that the sanitizers were made according to the WHO’s specifications.

He said that ethanol, hydrogen peroxide, glycerol were used, including additives made up of alovera gel and perfumes to make the liquid sticky and fragrant.

Judging from the production processes, it was obvious that the corps members had put in so much in terms of skills and resources to making the face masks and the hand sanitizers, which they intend to donate free of charge to the government and their host community by Monday.

It was however gathered, that the young and dynamic Honourable Commissioner for Youth Development, Comrade Ifeanyi Michael Egwunyenga, who had been monitoring the entrepreneurial progress of the corps members in Camp, would be present for the presentation, including the amiable monarch of Issele-Uku Kingdom, HRM Agbogidi Obi Nduka, Idumuje-Unor monarch, HRM Obi Charles Anyasi 111, the Aniocha North Local Government Chairman, Hon. Chuks Oseme and other stakeholders with strict observance of the social distancing regulation.