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A lawyer, Oluwole
Aluko, has sought the intervention of the judiciary for the revocation
of the 1973 decree that established the National Youth Service Corps
(NYSC).

Mr Aluko, in a suit
filed before a Federal High Court in Ibadan, joined both President
Goodluck Jonathan and Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister
of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, as respondents.

The lawyer claims
that the law that brought the NYSC into existence falls short of the
provision of the 1999 Constitution, as well as the African Charter on
Human and Peoples Rights and the United Nations Universal Declaration
on Human Rights, and wants it declared null and void and of no effect.

Mr. Aluko is
praying the court to determine whether the NYSC law, which compels
every first degree holder Nigerian below the age of 30 years to embark
on one year national service, is consistent with section 34(1) (a) (b)
and (c) of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution that confers on every citizen
right to personal dignity and freedom from inhuman and degrading
treatment, slavery or servitude and freedom from performing force or
compulsory labour.

He also wants to
determine whether the provision of section 34 (2) (e) (111) of the
country applies to the NYSC which talks about “part of the education
and training”, contending that the corps is not an educational
institution.

Other posers are:
“Whether the National Youth Service Corps Decree of 1973 by which every
Nigerian below the age of 30 years that has completed his first degree
at any University in Nigeria is liable to be called upon to serve in
the service corps without guarantee for safety of life of the corps
members where they serve is inconsistent with the provision of section
33 (1) of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution that guarantees the rights to
life of every person and therefore null and void.

“Whether the
National Youth Service Corps Decree of 1973 by which every Nigerian
below the age of 30 years that has completed the his first degree at
any University in Nigeria is liable to be called to serve in the
service corps without any liberty as to preference of place to serve is
inconsistent with the provision of section 35 (1) of the 1999 Nigerian
Constitution that confers right to personal liberty on individual and
non and void.

“Whether the
National Youth Service Corps scheme by which Nigerian Youths and
Graduates below age 30 years are forced to take part in the National
Youth Service Corps scheme is a violation of the African charter on
Human and Peoples Rights and Universal Declaration of Human Rights by
the United Nation Organization of which Nigeria is a signatory and
therefore null and void.

Force or duty

“Whether the
provision of section 12 (1) of the National Youth service Corps decree
of 1973, by which there cannot be employment anywhere in the Federation
for any University graduate except on the production of the discharge
certificate or exemption certificate issued by the Directorate of the
National Youth Service Corps, constitutes act of compulsion and if the
answer is in the affirmative, whether the National Youth Service Corps
Decree is invalid having regard to the provisions of sections 33, 34,
35 of the 1999 Nigerian constitution.

“Whether the
violation of the provisions of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution confers
right on any citizen of Nigeria to seek redress in court having regard
to the provision of section 1 (1) and (3) of the 1999 Nigerian
constitution that make the provisions of the constitution to be supreme
and having binding force on all authorities and persons and any law
that is inconsistent with it null and void.

The matter will be open for mention on May 18, 2011.