Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled that National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) must allow female corps members to wear skirts as part of their official uniform.
Gatekeepers News reports that delivering judgment, Justice Hauwa Joseph Yilwa held that the NYSC’s insistence on trousers as the sole acceptable uniform for female participants infringes on their constitutional rights to freedom of religion and human dignity.
The case was brought before the court by two former corps members, Ogunjobi John Blessing and Ayuba Vivian, who were denied their NYSC certificates for refusing to wear trousers during their service year. The court consolidated their separate suits for a hearing.
Justice Yilwa ruled that the NYSC’s refusal to include skirts in its uniform policy violates Section 38(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which guarantees freedom of religion.
The judge also cited Deuteronomy 22:5 of the Bible in support of her decision. As part of the ruling, the judge awarded N10 million in damages to the applicants.
One of the plaintiffs, Ayuba Vivian, a Microbiology graduate from Kaduna State University, was posted to serve in Zamfara State in 2018 but declined to wear trousers, citing her religious beliefs.
NYSC, in its defence, argued that all corps members had signed undertakings to comply with the scheme’s rules and dress code, designed to promote uniformity and discipline.
The court however maintained that religious rights cannot be overridden by internal regulations and emphasised that personal convictions must be respected within the framework of national service.
