Leadership (Abuja)
Ibrahim Modibbo
5 July 2008
Abuja — Worried by the spate of secret recruitment of staff in some federal agencies and parastatals, the Abuja Discussion Forum (ADF) yesterday rose from a crucial meeting with a call on President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to intervene by cancelling all secret employment that fails to meet the basic minimum standards of transparency and due process.
In a statement made available to LEADERSHIP WEEKEND and signed by its chairman, M.M. Abdu, the forum expressed concern over and took exception to employment secretly conducted through the internet, without regard to due process and in complete contravention of the Federal Character Act in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Against this background, the ADF called for presidential intervention, and particularly accused organisations like the Nigerian Immigration Service, Nigeria Prisons Service, Nigeria Customs Service and the Federal Road Safety Commission of breaching due process and the Federal Character Act in their recruitment exercise.
The forum said in part: "Furthermore, some organisations like the National Communication Commission, (NCC), Federal Civil Service College, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Securities and Exchange Commission and Petroleum Equalisation Fund have been recruiting in absolute secrecy, without the consent and participation of the Federal Character Commission which, by law, must be observers to all recruitment exercises, especially into the public sector.
"It is important to state that all employment in both public and private sectors must be done in a transparent manner reflecting merit, catchment area and, above all, representation of federal character in compliance with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria."
The chairman, who raised an alarm over this development, disclosed that employment, especially into the pubic sector, must have the endorsement of the Federal Character Commission, which is expected to take part as observers during tests and interviews, with a view to ensuring fairness and transparency, as anything contrary to this is wrong and criminal before the law.
Abdu said: "It is a class exclusion to advertise for employment on the internet, knowing full well that well over 95% of Nigerians have no access to the internet, as those who carry out secret employment do so only to the advantage of the powerful few and to the detriment of a larger population who have no god–fathers."
In view of the foregoing, the forum has called on Yar'Adua to annul all secret employment, including those solicited through the internet in the last one year, and order fresh, transparent methods of reaching to all the unemployed through newspaper advertisements, and State Civil Service commissions.
To work against future occurrences of these under-hand dealings, the forum also called on the National Assembly to fortify laws that would strengthen and support the Federal Character Commission in carrying out its statutory responsibilities without let or hindrance.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Leadership. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
