Still on the ‘padded’ recruitment
The release, about two weeks ago, of names of some lucky candidates for the Federal Government’s N-Power jobs has proved to Nigerians that the last of paddinghas actually not been heard; and that any government initiative could be an object of ‘padding’.As a fall out from the ‘padding’ scandal of the 2016 Appropriation Bill, theleadership […]
The release, about two weeks ago, of names of some lucky candidates for the Federal Government’s N-Power jobs has proved to Nigerians that the last of paddinghas actually not been heard; and that any government initiative could be an object of ‘padding’.As a fall out from the ‘padding’ scandal of the 2016 Appropriation Bill, theleadership of the country’s House of Representatives becameenmeshed in wild allegations that left many Nigerians singularly bewildered. This was even as President Muhammadu Buharimentioned thatit was the first time in his life he heard of anything called‘budget padding’.
After several promises by government, the recruitment of 200, 000 out of the planned 500, 000 graduates under the federal government youth employment scheme finally took off,although, on a controversial note. This employment scheme, otherwise branded as N-Power, is one of the key welfare initiatives announced by President Buhari during his presentation of the 2016 Appropriation Bill. N-Power is deliberately designed and intended to address the frightening crisis of unemployment in the country. The project which is under the coordination of the Office of the Vice President, President Yemi Osinbajo, involved a number of ministries including those of Education, Health, Agriculture, Labour and Employment.
The Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the Vice President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande explained that while 150, 000 out of the 200, 0000 set of lucky applicants will be deployed to teach; 30, 000 of them would work in the agricultural sector as 20, 000 would serve in the healthcare delivery system. Akande further stated that employees under the N-Power scheme shall be posted to serve in local government areas of their residence as the federal government can only pay a monthly stipend of N30, 000 to each graduate employee.
But soon after the release of the list, complaints from the Nigerian public including the Chairman of Abadam LGA of Borno State and the National President of the Gamji Members Association (GAMA) Dr. Abdullahi Bala Isabegan to trail the long-awaited list of the scheme’s employees.The method employed in the selection of applicants was also not spared from widespread criticisms. This is why I describe applicants selected in to the scheme as lucky instead of successfulcandidates. Nigerianskeep interrogating the criteria for shortlisting names of the lucky applicants as many names on the list do not reflect the demography of the states and local government areas which such names claim to represent.
As reasonable and acceptable as the scheme which is envisioned to be a palliative appears, the initiative seems to have fallen prey to corruption; the worst socio-economic evil bedeviling the country. According to the list published on the scheme’s website, some states including Borno, Adamawa, Zamfara, Kano, Katsina and Kebbi have names that are culturally and palpably incompatible with names of Nigerians from those states. A case in point is the list of Abadam LGA of Borno State where 90 percent of those employed in to the scheme is alleged to carry names of Nigerians that are not from that part of the country.
A more amazing paradox is the fact that such non-indigenous names are alleged to have enrolled online at their purported place of domicile from which even the natives have long fled to live as Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in distant places including the FCT. Oga Akande should find out from the bearers of such ‘fictitious’ names whether they were in Abadam as spirits or as Boko Haram insurgents. Akande keeps defending the use of state of residence other than state of origin as basis for selection as if the use of the latter in the past for recruitment into federal establishments was a failure.
If the accusations leveled against the first batch of the N-Power scheme by Nigerians are anything close to truth, this is one exercise thathas brought another round of embarrassment to President Buhari. He must have been embarrassed because it is happening under his leadership which is known to be very unfriendly to anything fraudulent. This has further revealed how most Nigerians including those he has appointed in to political offices are still unprepared to key into the real and legitimate war he is waging against corrupt practices in the past 20 months. Those who keep saying President Buhari is alone in the fight against corruption (particularly as it concerns abuse of public office and betrayal of public confidence) may have been vindicated by the list of the first batch of N-Power employees. Although Baba-Buhari has been able to controldamages tothe nation’s public treasury thereby halting further and the free-for-all looting of public funds; it is an open-secret that corruption yet thrives in Nigeria.
Mr. Akande, the Media Oga in VP Osinbajo’s office maintained that focal persons are in possession of the master list of all applicants with their contact details; adding that the focal persons are also in a position to verify whether or not the applicants are residents in their states. This writer lends his voice (and evenhis pen) to those calling on President Buhari to investigate the allegationstrailing the list of the 200, 000 N-Power employees. Akande should be asked to explain and make public the names of those he described as ‘focal persons’ whom he said were used for the exercise. Whose interest were these focal persons representing? Were they drafted to serve the political interest of some selected persons or group? Were they seconded from the workforce of the civil service to work for the project or were engaged as consultants? May Allah (SWT) guide us to change from the habitual corrupt ways of doing things that are meant to serve the common interest of all Nigerians, amin.