No fewer than 47 job seekers in Cross River State have lost more than N51.8 million to fraudsters who allegedly sold fake Local Government jobs during the now-cancelled 2024/2025 recruitment exercise.
The Chairman of the Cross River State Local Government Service Commission, Eyo Nsa Ekpo, disclosed this during an appearance on Let’s Talk Nigeria on Sparkling FM.
According to Ekpo, a government panel set up to investigate complaints and alleged irregularities surrounding the recruitment exercise discovered that 47 applicants had been deceived and intimidated into paying money for jobs that did not exist.
He said the victims allegedly paid between N100,000 and N1.5 million, depending on the positions they were seeking.
“Some of those who applied for senior positions allegedly paid as much as N1.3 million and N1.5 million to secure appointments,” Ekpo said.
The Commission chairman said investigations further revealed that the alleged fraudsters produced fake employment letters carrying government letterheads and forged signatures in a bid to convince applicants that they had secured Local Government jobs.
He added that some victims were allegedly threatened with blacklisting if they spoke about the payments.
According to him, several victims eventually came forward, submitted evidence to the panel and had their claims verified. He said the government also guaranteed the whistleblowers security and confidentiality.
The panel reportedly uncovered other irregularities, including allegations that some individuals manipulated the recruitment process to accommodate family members and persons who were not residents of Cross River State.
Following the panel’s findings, the state government cancelled the entire 2024/2025 Local Government recruitment exercise.
Ekpo said efforts had commenced to identify those allegedly involved in the scheme for questioning, prosecution and other appropriate sanctions.
“This will serve as a deterrent. Government jobs are not for sale,” he said, warning residents against paying money to anyone promising them government employment.
He urged anyone approached to pay for a government job to report the matter to the Commission or relevant security agencies.
Meanwhile, the Local Government Service Commission said it would retain 821 applicants from the earlier recruitment exercise, subject to proper verification, as part of efforts to salvage the recruitment process.
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