The Federal Road Safety Corps on Thursday dismissed circulating claims that prospective National Youth Service Corps members heading to Gombe State were involved in a fatal road accident.
Gistreel had earlier shared viral reports of prospective corps members who had supposedly succumbed to an ill-fated journey while on their way to NYSC camp.
Viral report – fake
Checks confirmed that the NYSC orientation camp in the state is already in session, with new corps members expected to begin their formal induction on Friday.
The viral message had alleged that 16 people were killed and two others severely injured, but extensive verification, including confirmation from official sources, revealed that the story was false and merely another alarmist post.
FRSC Public Relations Officer, Janet Kassa said, “I have checked with my colleagues there is no indication this happened in Gombe, not to mention that it even occurred.
“I have placed a series of calls across units and commands to authenticate the report, but there is no sign. This may be one of those posts to get comments and views.”
She further said to the correspondent that they’d be updated with the arrival of any new, credible information:
“I will let you know once we come up with fresh revelations, but for now, it’s not true. It should be disregarded.”
Likewise, the spokesperson for the Gombe State Police Command, DSP Buhari Abdullahi, confirmed that no incident matching the viral claim occurred anywhere in the state.
“We are still investigating to know, but as I speak from morning till now (night), no new findings.
“In the reports circulated, there was no mention of the hospital where the others were deposited or the proper address,” Abdullahi added.
NYSC debunks report
When reached for comment, Jennifer Laha, the Public Relations Officer of the NYSC in Gombe, also rejected the circulating images, labeling them as questionable.
“Well, I don’t have anything to say at the moment as the headquarters has yet to issue an official statement.
“However, from the pictures I saw, it looked like Artificial Intelligence pictures, from misspellings and all that. Also, NYSC doesn’t give prospective corps members a bus to take to orientation camps,” she added.