Female corper dies in Bayelsa orientation camp

A female member of the National Youth Service Corps, identified only as Jumoke, has reportedly died in Bayelsa State.

Jumoke was said to have died on Friday at the NYSC Orientation Camp in Kaiama, Kolokuma-Opokuma Local Government Area of the state.

The deceased corps member was in Platoon 8 at Kaiama Grammar School in Kaiama.

The state camp director, identified only as Mrs. Loto, officially broke the sad news to other corps members at the camp.

She was said to have pleaded with corps members not to always hide their health challenges, noting that only the living could serve the nation.

About four months ago, a corps member, Ogundare Opeyemi, slumped and died in Nembe area of the state.

Opeyemi was said to have died a day after he had a party with his colleagues in his area of primary assignment.

Also in December 2016, a 27-year-old female corps member, Miss Elechi Chiyerom, died after she allegedly bled and vomited on arrival at the Kaiama camp.

Jumoke, a 2017 Batch B Stream II corps member, was said to have died after an asthmatic attack.

The deceased, undergoing her orientation at the camp, was said to have died at the camp’s clinic.

Though her colleagues said Jumoke arrived in the camp with her inhaler to prevent any crisis, it was unclear whether she used it when the asthma attack started.

A source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, however, said the victim suffered her first attack a week after she arrived in the camp, but was assisted by her colleagues.

“When the deceased suffered her first attack in camp, she was helped by fellow corps members to overcome it. But we don’t know what happened when a similar attack that took her life happened,” she said.

Some persons also claimed that the deceased was both asthmatic and epileptic, saying she was not supposed to be in camp because of her health condition.

Jumoke’s remains were said to have been deposited at the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa.

The Director-General, NYSC, Brig.-Gen. Sule Kauzure, was said to have sent a delegation of senior NYSC officials from the headquarters in Abuja to Kaiama in Bayelsa State.

The Punch gathered that the officials arrived on Friday evening and immediately commenced investigations to ascertain the circumstances that led to her death.

The NYSC officials in Bayelsa refused to comment on the matter when the Newspaper contacted them. They said the headquarters had taken over the matter.