The National Youth Service (NYS) director general, Matilda Sakwa, called for a review of the freedoms enjoyed by trainees after the number of pregnancy cases among servicewomen rose.
Speaking on Saturday, October 29, Sakwa faulted authorities for granting trainees permission to temporarily leave the colleges, arguing that unauthorised leaves and off days contributed to the spike in conception among female recruits.
She further explained that the pregnancies led to a dip in the number of female trainees from the service.
“I find it disturbing whenever servicewomen are compelled to separate from service on account of pregnancy, especially when they are in the last stages of their training.
“I want to urge our commanding officers to interrogate and evaluate management styles in order to come up with working solutions,” the DG stated.
Furthermore, Sakwa called out the irresponsible sexual behaviour among recruits citing the prevalence of HIV/Aids and other diseases in the colleges.
The NYS boss, who presided over the opening of the NYS Athletics Championship in Turbo, disclosed that abuse of drugs was slowly creeping into the training institutions.
Consequently, she directed the management in the training camps to uphold high standards of discipline in accordance with the service's values.
Trainees were also urged to embrace sports to nurture their skills as an escape from the rigorous training sessions.
To curb the menace, Sakwa pledged to revise the athletics calendar to have trainees compete at national championships organised by Athletics Kenya.
Sports, she stated, fosters unity and encourages the appreciation of diversity among the recruits.
