FCC Fingers FRSC, FCDA, Interior Ministry in Bribe-for-Job Scam

There were startling revelations yesterday at the commencement of a public hearing held by the Senate Joint Committees on Federal Character and Labour and Productivity on the bribe-for-job scandal that has rocked several public sector parastatals. In his presentation, Chairman of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), Professor Oba Abdulrahman, disclosed how the Ministry of Interior had facilitated job scams by opening a website for recruitment without stating the offices to be applied for.According to him, by asking applicants to submit curriculum vitaes to the website without specifying designations, the process was hijacked by fraudsters who exploited the desperation of applicants to lure them into job scams.

Also at the public hearing, the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) was fingered as one of the organisations violating the federal character principle in its recruitment exercise.

Deputy Corps Marshal of FRSC, Adekunle Abu, had during his presentation, boasted that the commission was above board in the observance of the federal character principle in its recruitment exercise.
He said between 2010 and 2012, the commission employed 6,000 persons in observance of the relevant laws.

But Abdulrahman faulted Abu’s claim, saying FCC was not aware of any recruitment by FRSC in 2012.
But in his bid to justify his claim, Abu presented the certificate issued the commission by FCC to that effect.

The bubble, however, burst when Abdulrahman told the gathering that the certificate, which was dated 2011, did not cover the 2012 exercise, thus confirming that the recruitment done last year by FRSC was illegal.

Abdulrahman also accused ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of government of aiding and abetting recruitment exercise violations by their alleged flagrant non-compliance with the federal character principle.
He accused them of recruiting without consulting the FCC in accordance with laid down rules and regulations.

The former vice-chancellor, who said it was time for culprits of employment scams to be prosecuted, challenged heads of institutions to fish out those who had embarked on illegal recruitments in their agencies.
Abdulrahman described the violation of the federal character principle as a serious threat to the unity of Nigeria, noting that the trend, if not immediately curtailed, could result in the breakdown of law and order.

Also, the Deputy Comptroller of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Mohammed Makarfi, disclosed how NCS intercepted an illegal employment website in Owerri, the Imo State capital, adding that culprits of the scam had been arrested and handed over to the police for prosecution.

The committees also faulted claims by the Foreign Affairs Ministry that it had always taken into consideration the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria before embarking on any recruitment exercise.
The senators told the ministry that the committees had received petitions alleging non-compliance with the employment regulations by the ministry.

However, Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) were given a clean bill of health by the FCC chairman as he confirmed their submissions had always been sent to the commission before embarking on recruitment exercise.

Abdulrahman disclosed that whereas CBN was fond of “cutting corners” in its recruitment exercise in the past, it has recently turned over a new leaf, by complying with the federal character principle.

FCC also disowned a certificate allegedly issued by the FCC to Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) in its recent recruitment exercise, describing it as fake.

Chairman of the Committee on Federal Character, Senator Awaisu Kuta, lamented that fraudsters outside the system now capitalise on scams in the agencies to establish fake offices and issue fake employment letters.
He demanded a comprehensive list of recruitments carried out by various parastatals.

Kuta, who is also the chairman of the joint committees probing the recruitment scams, chronicled the list of various employment scams in government agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force, NCS, National Examinations Council (NECO), Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), among others.

He said: “A recruitment scam has also been reportedly discovered at NCS. Here, an illegal recruitment syndicate has defrauded innocent candidates with the connivance of some officers and men of the Customs Service.

“It has also been reported that NCS has discovered the involvement of some commercial banks and some staff of the National Youth Service Corps who connive with fraudsters to open accounts being used to defraud job seekers.”
Declaring open the public hearing, Senate President David Mark said the Senate was generally concerned about the issue of job insecurity in the MDAs.

“Most heads of federal establishments secure for their relations unwarranted advantages which they are not ordinarily legally or morally entitled to.

“This is a manifestation of a corrupt society where there is no equity or fairness,” he said.

He also said the ugly trend had killed patriotism and ignited anger from Nigerians who had been denied their rightful place on account of their ethnic background.

The hearing, which is scheduled to last for three days, was the fallout of the Senate’s mandate to the committees on January 16 to investigate allegations of rampant recruitment scandals in government institutions with a view to bringing the perpetrators to book.
The hearing continues tomorrow.