FG cancels Immigration recruitment

Information Minister Labaran Maku said Jonathan gave the cancellation directive and named a committee to start the process afresh during the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting at the State House in Abuja.Over 500,000 applicants trooped into the Immigration recruitment test centres around the country on Saturday, resulting into stampedes that left at least 16 dead […]

Information Minister Labaran Maku said Jonathan gave the cancellation directive and named a committee to start the process afresh during the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting at the State House in Abuja.
Over 500,000 applicants trooped into the Immigration recruitment test centres around the country on Saturday, resulting into stampedes that left at least 16 dead in Abuja, Minna, Port Harcourt and Benin.
The incident sparked nationwide anger and widespread calls for the firing of Interior Minister Abba Moro and Controller General of Immigration David Parradang.
President Goodluck Jonathan queried them on Monday but there is no firm indication yet that they would lose their jobs.
Maku said yesterday: “(The) Immigration exercise has been completely cancelled and (the President) has directed that a new exercise be conducted by a special committee under the chairmanship of the chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission to conduct the recruitment exercise to fill the vacancies of the Nigerian Immigration Service.”
He also said the Federal cabinet regretted the recruitment tragedy, commiserated with the bereaved families and sympathised with the injured.
Maku said Jonathan also directed that three automatic employment slots at the Immigration service be reserved for the relatives of each of the deceased, and one slot for each of the injured applicants.
One of the three beneficiaries from the deceased’s families must be a female, he added.
The special committee set up to conduct a fresh recruitment has the following members: the Immigration Controller General, representatives of the Inspector General of Police, Commandant General of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, Director General of the State Security Service, Controller General of Prisons and Corps Marshall of the Federal Road Safety Commission.
Following the recruitment deaths, National Assembly mmembers on Tuesday added their voices to the calls for the sacking of the Interior Minister and the Controller General of Immigration.
At least N700 million would have been realised by the consultancy company that handled the recruitment, based on the figure of 700,770 jobseekers who submitted applications.
Maku yesterday parried questions on why the minister was excluded from the new recruitment committee; whether the government would refund the N1,000 paid by each applicant; and whether the government would raise a committee to probe the ill-fated recruitment exercise.
Asked why Moro was excluded in the committee, the Information Minister said: “I’ve just told you the decisions made by the Federal Executive Council”.
Our correspondent reports that before Jonathan arrived at the Council Chambers for the FEC meeting, Moro was seen wearing a long face. Much later after his colleagues had left the State House, the Interior Minister resurfaced and headed for the president’s office.
Maku disclosed that the president, as soon as he returns from his trip abroad next week, would meet the families of the deceased to express his personal condolences to them.
He said Jonathan also instructed all ministries, departments and agencies, except the armed forces and police, should never embark on the kind of recruitment exercise conducted by Immigration service.
“He instructed all MDAs never to embark on exercise of this nature in recruiting people into the public service because what happened could have been avoided. So, Mr. President directed that no one outside the armed forces and the police that usually recruit people through exercise, that no other MDA is allowed to embark on this kind of exercise that we witnessed on Saturday,” Maku said.
“We regret (the incident) and we pray for the repose of the souls of those who have departed. The council noted that it’s regrettable that this took place at a time that every effort was being made by government to increase spaces available for employment,” he said.
“We assure the nation today (yesterday) that every step will be taken to look into the various lapses in recruitment exercises into the public service to ensure that all those who are qualified get access to employment without going through this kind of experience”.
Our correspondent reports that yesterday’s FEC meeting lasted for only one hour.