THE National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has summoned Ushie Rita Uguamaye, a corps member serving in Lagos State, following her viral social media post criticising President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
A message from the NYSC Local Government Inspector (LGI), seen by SaharaReporters on Sunday, instructed Rita, with code number LA/24B/832, to report to the Eti Osa 3 local government office by 10 a.m. on Monday without fail.
The real issue
Rita had posted a video on TikTok under the handle @talktoraye, where she tearfully expressed frustration over the rising cost of goods in Nigeria. Her emotional post quickly gained attention, prompting a response from the NYSC board.
She described Tinubu as a “terrible” President and accused the government of neglecting the economic hardship faced by citizens.
“If a lot of Nigerians come out and start speaking about what we are going through, maybe changes will be made in the government,” she said in the TikTok video.
“I don’t know if there is any other president that is as terrible as you, but you are such a terrible president.”
She further lamented the financial struggles she faces as a corps member, stating that the monthly NYSC allowance is insufficient to cover basic living expenses.
According to her, she often spends more than she earns due to the skyrocketing cost of essentials.
She said, “So, I am coming from a supermarket where I went to get foodstuff, and everything has gone up again. It’s just like every single week, prices keep increasing. I want to know, what is the government doing about this increase? Is there going to be a particular time when prices will stop going up?
“Why am I going to get a crate of eggs and I’m told it costs N6,500? It doesn’t make any sense that eggs would cost that much. I literally remember when eggs cost N800. I am so overwhelmed because this is the first time I’ve stayed out of my family house.
“After I left the supermarket, I got home, and the security and NEPA bills have skyrocketed, doubling in price. It is insane. I can’t keep up with these bills. Every single penny I make, I am using it to pay bills.
“The crazy thing is, you want to go out with your friend, and Uber is N25,000. Why are things so expensive?
“To make it worse, Lagos stinks. Everywhere smells. What is the government doing about the smell? Being an NYSC corper, there is nothing so beneficial about this scheme.
“The money I spend on transportation is much more than the allowance the federal government pays us. We should start calling out the government. For example, Tinubu, you are a terrible person. What are you doing to help our economy?”
Less than 24 hours after posting a video in which she called President Tinubu “terrible,” she shared another clip showing her receiving a call from an NYSC official.
The corps member further revealed that she had been receiving multiple calls from NYSC officials, urging her to stop criticising the government and delete the video.
She said, “Yesterday, I made a video talking about the Nigerian government and how terrible President Tinubu is and I was crying in the video. Thirty minutes ago, I received a call from the NYSC board starting with the secretariat before the LGI and for the NYSC secretariat, I’m going to attach some of the things she said so you guys can hear.”
During the conversation with the woman she identified as an NYSC official, the official is heard asking, “Are you normal?” In response, Raye clarified that she was not insulting the president.
The official retorted, “Come on, keep quiet there. Pull down that rubbish you put there. You are not talking to your mate.”
Rita then questioned, “Are you threatening me?”
Rita recounted, “She called me and was yelling at me to take down the video.”
She expressed concern that corps members are required to provide their phone numbers and addresses on forms, lamenting, “These people know my address and where I live, and now they’ve begun threatening me.”
She said, “It is so bad that you can’t even just speak up about the government because they feel like they have chains to hold you. She was telling me that I was insulting the president. I never insulted the president, I said he is terrible. That is not an insult, it is a statement.”
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“NYSC, they have my house address and they have started calling me to threaten me so in case anything happens, people will be very much aware of where the problem started from.
“I’m depressed and bank account in going to zero and I still have to live every day. I’m asking the Nigerian government to do something about the inflation. Instead of me to get a call saying, ‘Ok, we are working on it,’ I ‘m getting a call saying, ‘You are very stupid. Why did you do that to Tinubu? Take don that video.’”
The development has triggered reactions from Nigerians, with many questioning whether corps members should be restricted from expressing their views on governance and national issues.