The coronavirus pandemic has shattered the economy of many countries creating massive unemployment and loss of jobs. In Nigeria, it was economic hardship and poverty that forced the government to lift the lockdown order that had been in place for three months in major cities in the country.
The government even began a feeding program for households but it could not sustain the initiative because of the population size. Sending 500,000 youths back into the labor market after 4 years of volunteer service may not be a good idea at this time.
Employers have sacked many staffs and the job market is saturated already. While the Batch A of the Npower program spent a complete four years, the Batch B had only 24 months. It is not certain if there is going to be an exit package for the Npower volunteers because the ministry of humanitarian affairs and disaster management has not clarified speculations on the issue.
Many volunteers that took part in the power program are frustrated at the news that the government plans to compulsorily exit them from the scheme. For some, it will be without devices and with a backlog of unpaid monthly stipends.
Social media has been a veritable platform for many volunteers to vent their spleen and anger at the decision of the government which will throw them back into the labor market at this critical time.
The ministry has also announced that registration for the new batch of Npower will commence very soon. Those that have grievances over the exit will not have any opportunity to express their displeasure formally as all hope of being enlisted to the civil service has been dashed.
