At least 1.4 million Nigerians scrambled for 5,000 job openings advertised by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), marking yet another testament to Nigeria’s acute unemployment.
Federal officials working on the recruitment process revealed this week that 1, 477, 042 million applications were received through the Civil Defence’s website at the close of submission on September 7, 2019. The online portal for 2020 recruitment opened on August 9, 2019, running for just a month.
Of the 1.4 million applicants, thousands would be selected to take part in the next stage of the recruitment process, it was learnt from officials who spoke under anonymity because the civil service rules prevent them from discussing official activities.
Those shortlisted would then face a series of written examinations to be conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB). The Civil Defence, Fire, Immigration and Prisons Services Board (CDFIPB), a federal agency coordinating the recruitment, has already written to JAMB seeking the examination body’s cooperation in setting guidelines for the upcoming computer-based tests.
As part of the requirement for the job that pays above the N30,000 national minimum wage, thousands of shortlisted applicants would take questions similar to those set for candidates seeking admission into tertiary institutions in the country.
It was the first time that JAMB would be asked to set written examinations for candidates seeking Civil Defence jobs.
When the CDFIPB, a department under the interior ministry, first announced the exercise last year, it indicated that 10,000 people would be recruited into Civil Defence. The figure was consistent with annual intake for the NSCDC in recent years. The police also conduct a similar recruitment drive, taking in 10,000 officers and rank-and-file annually.
But shortly after application closed, the government started mulling over its ability to take as much as the 10,000 advertised, according to officials familiar with the situation.
“It was eventually decided the government could only make provisions for 5,000 new recruits,” an official said. “That was what was captured in the 2020 budget.”
While the hurried elimination of 5,000 potential employees unsettled a large number of applicants, the main battle could still lay ahead in the scramble for the remaining 5,000 openings, according to another official source.
Upon conclusion of the written exercise, political and business heavyweights with actual or perceived influence would start fighting to reserve slots for their hangers-on.
“We have already come under pressure from top political office holders and their spouses, top businesspeople, traditional leaders, senior academics and people who know people who work at NSCDC or the Ministry of Interior,” a senior official said. “We are already confused even at this early stage.”
The official said the outcome of the written examinations and other pre-qualification tasks that shortlisted candidates would participate in may not necessarily determine those that would make the 5,000 cut.