Almost 5,000 civil servants recruited by
the Federal Civil Service Commission, FCSC, during the administration
of former President Goodluck Jonathan are on the verge of being fired as
President Muhammadu Buhari’s government has launched investigations on
the “federal character” of their employment.
According to sources, there was a move
by the Federal Civil Service Commission to sack the workers penciled
down in the mass retrenchment on Monday, September 12, 2016, but the
action was suspended because of its potential to cause “crisis in the
system”.
About 247 of the affected workers had
petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences
Commission over the plan by the FCSC to victimise them by relieving them
of their jobs.
Dr. Shettima Abba, the acting executive
chairman of the Federal Character Commission had questioned the chairman
of the FCSC, Mrs. Joan Ayo, for “ostensibly violating the principle of
federal character in the recruitment of the civil servants”. This query
was via a letter dated May 3, 2016.
He said the employment that reportedly
took place between 2013 and 2015, featured “an obvious abuse of the
federal character principle”.
According to Abba, the recruitment was
allegedly done in “favour of the South South geopolitical zone” which
got 33.6 per cent of those recruited as against the 26.2 per cent which
was allotted to other regions in the North.
He advised the FCSC to correct the inequality in the 2106 recruitment exercise.
“The Federal Character Commission has
viewed and observed with concern the recruitment exercises undertaken by
the Federal Civil Service between 2013 and 2015, which glaringly is
lopsided and grossly abused the principle of Federal Character to which
all institution have subscribed,” the query, which was leaked to the
press, said.
“The recruitment which recorded the
engagement of about 4,904 workers, threw away all common sense and
wisdom of national cohesion and integration by favouring some states to
the detriment of others.
“We are worried that if this trend is
allowed to continue, then some sections of the country may not only feel
alienated but may feel insecure by the action of people in authority.
“It is inconceivable and a gross
injustice for a geopolitical zone to be allocated 33.6 per cent of the
total candidates recruited as against 26.2 per cent for three zones
combined, North-East, North-West and North-Central.
“We further request without prejudice
that all processes must involve the Federal Character Commission for
advice and strict adherence to the principle of federal character as
contained in our circular on guidelines and procedure for recruitment.”
The ICPC has intervened in the matter
following the protest from 247 of the affected workers. The
workers alleging that attempt to sack them is based on ethnic
consideration and a plot to cover up fraud that were embedded in
previous employment practices undertaken by the commission.
The workers had displayed documentary
evidence of the exchange of letters between the commission and the
office of the accountant general of the federation in which the
appointments were verified.
However, Dr. Abel Oruche, the spokesperson for the FCSC told Punch
that irregularly employed workers would be sacked, adding that he was
oblivious of any interrogation of the chairman or any other member of
the commission by the ICPC
“I’m not aware that anybody was
interrogated by the ICPC or whether the chairman was invited. Nobody
interrogated the chairman of the FCSC, any commissioner or any
official.”
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