Youthful Exuberance To Blame For NSS Registration Delays

Management of the National Service Scheme (NSS) has said youthful exuberance on the part of prospective personnel is to blame for the long queues at centres for this year's NSS registration.

Although a lot of initiatives have been instituted by the scheme to ensure a smooth process this year, the frustrations experienced by applicants from previous years is still present.

Many of these personnel have been left stranded after queuing for long hours at the various registration centres to complete the process.

But speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show on Thursday, David Prah, Public Relations Officer of the Scheme, whiles expressing shock at the situation, said personnel have made the process cumbersome for themselves due to their failure to adhere to instructions for the registration procedure.

“Some of the personnel have still not printed their posting letters. What brings the long queues is that human beings as we are and especially the youth or early adults still have some level of exuberance; let me wait, take my time and visit [the centre].”

“Though someone has booked 10a:00m, he will come to the centre at 11:00am or 12:00pm. Meanwhile 12:00pm has been booked by another person so you come and add up to the person who has already booked 12:00pm. So the number will increase because the 10 o'clock slot is specifically for you”, he mentioned.

Frustrated Service Personnel
Hundreds of prospective national service personnel are stranded following the delays in the registration process.

The applicants who have massed up at the Greater Accra regional registration centre said, the National Service Secretariat must digitize the biometric registration system to avoid the long queues.

A visit by Citi News' Caleb Kudah to one of the centres in Accra showed that many of these personnel were angry after queuing for long hours to complete the process.

He reported that scores of the prospective personnel trickled in as early as 8:00pm last night just to have their names recorded, adding that as at 7:30am today [Thursday], more than 500 names had been written.

Some of the registrants who spoke to Citi News were completely unhappy about the process.

“I came here as early as 2:30am but as at now nothing has started”, a frustrated father fumed.

Extension of Biometric Registration
Gifty Oware Aboagye, Deputy Executive Director of the National Service Scheme has blamed the slow nature of this year's biometric registration on prospective personnel's failure to adhere to instructions.

According to her, the registration process has been improved this year.

In an interview with Citi News, she urged prospective personnel to exercise patience as the deadline for biometric registration has been extended to December 31.

“You could go to any of the regional offices and register because the biometric registration continues till December and last year that is what we did”, she said.