The Nigerian House of Representatives are set to investigate alleged corruption in the recruitment and promotions of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps over a period of ten years.
This decision was taken at the plenary on Tuesday. The House mandated its committees on Interior, Federal Character, and Public Service Matters to “investigate recruitment, staff quota, and promotion exercises carried out by the NSCDC over 10 years and report back within six weeks for further legislative action.”
The probe is based on a motion moved by two members, Awaji-Inombek Abiante and Dumnamene Dekor, titled, “Call to Investigate the Recruitment, Staff Quota, and Promotion Process at the NSCDC.”
Presenting the motion, which the lawmakers unanimously adopted, Abiante noted that the NSCDC was primarily charged with the responsibility of maintaining peace and order, protecting public infrastructure, and rescuing the civil population during an emergency.
The lawmaker said recent reports indicated that the NSCDC had not been observing the principles of Federal Character in its recruitment processes, “thus marring the corps with irregularities, racketeering, favouritism and nepotism as well as securing convictions for erring officials.”
He alleged that the recent recruitment exercises by the NSCDC were “marred with favouritism and abuse of Federal Character principles, where the management team used their position and influence in high places of authority to recruit family members.”
Abiante further alleged that a recruitment exercise was carried out “without advertisement, with over 90 employment letters returned to the headquarters from Imo State, as those who were to receive their letters did not show up and that those slots were reported to belong to Rivers State indigenes.”
The lawmaker noted that in 2021, the Joint Committee on Security and Public Service of the Bauchi State House of Assembly, led by Hon Sabo Sade, recommended outright rejection of the recruitment exercise as being fraudulent, which resolutions the House adopted and communicated the same to the NSCDC headquarters.
The lawmaker also cited the judgment of the Sokoto State High Court, which sentenced two officials of the NSCDC, Mainasara Malami and Emmanuel Salihu to 14 years for defrauding four persons of N1.9m under the pretence of securing jobs for them.
Abiante said, “The House is worried that this ugly precedent has become a frequent occurrence in the NSCDC and currently, indigenes of other states are being employed, promoted, and allocated in the place of the quota for Rivers State indigenes.”