The Rivers State Governor, Rt Hon Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, has offered automatic employment in the state civil service to the best corper of the year in the Batch C 2009 members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

Amaechi who announced the offer at the passing out of the NYSC members in Port Harcourt yesterday explained that the offer was the  rewarding of the good performance of the recipient, Mr Borishade Adetola during the service year.

Speaking at the occasion, Amaechi told Nigerian youths not to be  deterred by the present economic situation in the country as the future provides endless opportunity for them to excel.

The governor, who recalled his year as a. corps member, said the “opportunities available in Nigeria are limitless, but to achieve the breakthrough every effort must be backed by determination to succeed”.

The State Chief Executive thanked the corps members for their services to the state, in spite of obvious deprivations, and apologised over the kidnap of four of their colleagues at Omuma Local Government Area of the state.

He explained that the perpetrators of the crime came from neighbouring Abia State and entered the area, through a border community in the state to commit the act, assuring that steps had been taken to avert a repeat of the incident.

He, however,  announced the release of all outstanding monetary allowances owed the corps members which he said should be paid immediately to the outgoing corps members including transportation.

The State Chairman of NYSC Governing Board and Secretary to the State Government, Hon. Magnus Abe, lauded the corps members for successfully completing their one year service to the country and urged them to remain good ambassadors of the scheme by upholding its lofty ideals.

He urged them to explore the many possibilities made available by some government agencies such as the National Directorate of Employment and Small and Medium Scale Development Agencies to be self employed rather than wait for non-existent jobs.

On her part, the Rivers State Co-ordinator of NYSC, Mrs Esther Wogbo, congratulated the outgoing corps members for successfully passing through the four cardinal points of the scheme which are, orientation, primary assignments, community development service and winding up processes leading up to passing out.

She said while some of the corps members would be rewarded for their outstanding performances, 17 of them had been sanctioned for various offences, and would not pass out, and announced that the state lost one member of the 2009 Batch C “corps member, Amanze George Chigozie, who was serving with the Ministry of Justice, up till his death.

Highpoints of the passing out was march past by the corps members, observance of a minute of silence for the deceased corps member and presentation of certificates to the corps members.