Immigration recruitment mess; Jonathan gets 250 slots, Mother gets 40, Patience Jonathan gets 100, Minister gets 100...
Daily Trust reported in its edition of yesterday that the Immigration
service has been conducting a secret recruitment exercise that allegedly
favoured the Southeast, just three months to the exit of Controller
General Mrs. Rose Chinyere Uzoma.
In a statement in Abuja yesterday, the
Interior Ministry ordered that the exercise be canceled “until a more
transparent, acceptable” procedure is adopted.
“Minister of Interior Comrade Abba Moro
has directed the cancellation of the ongoing recruitment exercise in the
Nigeria Immigration Service,” a statement by the minister’s spokesman
Ubong George Udoh said.
“(The) Minister stated that following
apparent controversy trailing the ongoing recruitment exercise in
Nigeria Immigration Service, the responsible thing to do is to cancel
the exercise until a more transparent, acceptable and effaceable
platform is established to enlist qualified Nigerians into the service.
“Comrade Moro directed further that all
appointment letters issued and documentations carried out stand
cancelled, until the Civil Defence, Immigration and Prisons Service
Board, meet to consider the waivers granted Nigeria Immigration service
to recruit men and women into the service.
“Finally the Honorable Minister has also
directed that forthwith all recruitment into the services of the
Federal Fire Service, Nigerian Prisons Service, Nigeria Immigration
Service and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps are suspended until
a more transparent exercise based on already established guidelines
before such requirements will be conducted.”
Yesterday’s cancellation of the
recruitment came on the heels of a probe opened by the House of
Representatives Committee on Federal Character which had also asked the
Immigration service to suspend the exercise.
Daily Trust reported yesterday that
Uzoma appeared before the House committee last week to defend
accusations of failure to publicly advertise vacancies and giving undue
favouritism to the Southeast.
She told the lawmakers that the service
did not advertise the jobs so as not to unknowingly employ terrorists,
but the lawmakers reminded her that even the Military and Police are
advertising their vacancies in spite of the prevailing insurgency.
She also said she had already obtained approval from the Head of Service of the Federation to employ 4,560 people.
The House committee found out that out
of the over 25,000 existing Immigration staff, Uzoma’s husband’s state
of origin Imo has the highest number with 1,190; Kano has 350; Lagos has
400; while Sokoto has the least with 200.
In the now cancelled recruitment
exercise, Uzoma had offered hundreds of job slots to top government
functionaries, including the Presidency which is offered 250 slots,
Jonathan’s mother 40 slots, First Lady 100 slots, Interior Minister Abba
Moro 100 slots, two commissioners of the Immigration board 30 slots
each, and the Federal Character Commission 250 slots.
A source said the Federal Character
Commission was given those job slots for giving the Immigration service
waiver on the advertisement of the vacancies, but the commission’s
spokesman Usman Jimada denied any wrongdoing.
Spokesman for the Immigration service
Mr. Olumbar Joachim said on Sunday he was not aware of the Presidency
getting offers to fill certain vacancies but added that there was
nothing wrong with the Presidency or other officials making
recommendations to the service.
Via Daily Post
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