Nigeria Prisons Service (NPS) is again enmeshed in another scandal of illegal recruitment of personnel, with many of the intakes allegedly paying as much as N650,000 each to gain employment into the service.
Between October 2016 and now, over 3,800 people are said to have been recruited underground, most of whom have equally undergone training and posted to various prisons across the federation.
LEADERSHIP Sunday gathered that the secret recruitment being done in defiance of the federal character principle is ongoing and the second batch of the segmented recruits is currently undergoing training at some of the prisons service’s training schools.
A top officer at the service’s national headquarters, Abuja who craved anonymity said the new recruits were hired into various rank categories, including assistant superintendent of prisons (ASP), inspector of prisons, prison assistant, among others and that the comptroller-general of the service, Ahmed Ja’afaru was neck deep into the illegality.
According to him, degree holders are charged N650,000, higher national diploma holders pay N550,000 and school certificate holders cough out between N350,000 and N400,000.
“It has reached a point where the illegality should be exposed otherwise cash-strapped job seeking applicants may never be employed. Nigerians should know that there is periodic backdoor recruitment exercise in which positions are simply put up for sale, while top officials fill their pockets and bank accounts in the process”.
Another officer who also asked not to be mentioned added another dimension to the scandal which he called bribe-for-posting-and-promotion scheme as well as another racket which ensures that high profile inmates enjoy uncommon privileges being perpetrated in the service.
He claimed prison authorities use foot soldiers, corrupt warders and notorious inmates in the actualization of these illegalities.
"They have fixed price tags for postings, promotions and entry-level jobs”, he further alleged, pointing out that the promotion of officers “uncooperative officers” was being delayed for refusing to “jump on the band-wagon of dubious officers who exchange money for promotion.
“Even the deployment of officers to prisons nationwide is often influenced by how much you get to pay and not by merit. I’m specifically talking about sensitive positions like that of deputy-comptrollers of prisons, chief warder and yard masters. These are normally those who not only divert funds and foodstuffs meant for inmates, but also use their fronts to extort money from inmates and their relations. This is massively responsible for frequent complaints of poor welfare of inmates, poor maintenance of facilities and gross abuse of prisons’ rules and of course jailbreak”, he stated.
But the public relations officer of the Nigeria Prisons Service, Francis Enobore, dismissed the allegations, as not only unfounded but wicked and challenged those making the allegations to prove them.
Dissociating the prisons boss from any form of illegality or corrupt practices, he said no amount of conspiracy or criminal gang up by those behind the allegations would deter him (Ja’afaru) from continuing with the work of cleaning the rot in the system.
“NPS has no reason to do underground employment. The general public will be well informed as and when due. If any job seeker is patronising any scammer out of desperation, then such applicants should desist from encouraging and enriching these criminals”, he said.
He debunked the allegation that training of the second batch of new recruits was on-going, saying “our training colleges are always open to staff to pass through different phases of trainings.
‘In fact, our training colleges re-opened in the month of February to enable our personnel meet up with missed courses. So, our facilities are always busy. Those training there are not secret recruits as falsely speculated”, he noted.
The spokesman of prisons service added: “If your sources have reliable evidence on these biased, discrediting and wicked image slandering allegations against the prisons boss, then let them make such public and win Nigerians’ support”.
Enobore described the allegations as not only false in its entirety but malicious and career damaging, pointing out that officers caught perpetrating various corrupt practices in the service had since been prosecuted.
He continued: “Some people some time ago who were masquerading as agents to the service were trailed, arrested and handed over to the police for prosecution and a press release signed by me was later issued in this regard.
“My boss is too decent to stoop this low. He’s a man of integrity and therefore cannot compromise his service standard of cleaning the rot in the system”.
Leadership
