The Federal High Court in Abuja has delivered a stinging verdict against the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), declaring that its refusal to allow female corps members to wear skirts in line with their religious convictions is unlawful, discriminatory, and a breach of constitutional rights.
In a landmark judgment delivered on June 13, 2025, Justice Hauwa Yilwa ruled that the NYSC’s policy mandating trousers for all female corps members violates the right to freedom of religion and human dignity as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). A certified copy of the judgment was made public on Sunday.
The case was brought by two former corps members, Miss Blessing Ogunjobi and Miss Vivian Ayuba, who filed separate suits—FHC/ABJ/CS/989/2020 and FHC/ABJ/CS/988/2020—against the NYSC and its Director-General. Both plaintiffs argued that being compelled to wear trousers during their national service contravened their Christian beliefs, citing Deuteronomy 22:5, which they interpret as a biblical prohibition against women wearing men’s clothing.
Given the similar nature of the suits, the court consolidated both cases and heard them together. The applicants alleged that NYSC officials harassed, embarrassed, and humiliated them for refusing to wear trousers, and sought judicial declarations that their fundamental rights were violated.
Relying on Sections 38 and 42 of the Constitution, Articles 2, 5, 6, 8, 10, 17, and 19 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules 2009, the applicants asked the court to compel the NYSC to recognise and provide skirt options for female corps members with religious objections to trousers. They also referenced Schedule 2, Article 1(I)(a) of the NYSC Bye-Laws 1993.
Each applicant demanded ₦10 million in damages for what they described as unlawful denial of their right to manifest their religion in practice and observance.
Justice Yilwa granted all the reliefs sought, holding that the NYSC’s uniform policy, in its failure to accommodate genuine religious objections, amounted to religious discrimination and violated the applicants’ rights to dignity and freedom of religion.
The court ordered the NYSC to:
Permit the use of skirts by female corps members who raise sincere religious objections to wearing trousers;
Recall the affected ex-corps members and issue them their Certificates of National Service accordingly.
The judge further declared that the treatment of the applicants—including harassment and public humiliation—was unconstitutional and degrading.
Although the court declined to award the ₦10 million each applicant had requested, it awarded ₦500,000 in damages to each woman as compensation for the violation of their rights.
“The actions of the respondents led to the applicants being embarrassed and humiliated. This is a blatant infringement of their fundamental rights,” Justice Yilwa said in the judgment.
The ruling sets a significant precedent on the balance between national policy and religious freedom in public institutions and could influence future reforms within the NYSC and similar government agencies.
