Following the allegations of corruption in the recently Police Constable Recruitment Exercise, the Police Service Commission (PSC) has insisted that a forensic audit be carried out on the list of the successful candidates, using the result of the JAMB computer based test.
The Commission made this demand in a statement issued on Friday by its Head of Press and Public Relations, Ikechukwu Ani.
Recall that the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) recently in a statement issued by the Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi on behalf of the Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Igbetokun raised alarm on the irregularities and alleged corruption of the recently released names of successful candidates in the ongoing 2022/23 Police Constables Recruitment Exercise.
The Force said, upon careful scrutiny of the list released on the PSC portal, it was discovered that “Several names of persons purported to be names of successful candidates are those who did not even apply and therefore did not take part in the recruitment exercise”.
It said, “The published list contains several names of candidates who failed either the Computer Based Test (CBT) or the physical screening exercise or both”.
NPF also said that “there are those who made it to the last stage of the exercise but were disqualified having been found Medically unfit through the standardised medical test but who also made the list of successful candidates as published by the PSC”.
It said, “most worrisome is the allegation of financial dealings and corrupt practices leading to the outcome where unqualified and untrainable individuals have been shortlisted”.
It, therefore, called for a total review of the process with a view to recruiting qualified, competent, trainable and productive hands into the Nigeria Police Force, in line with the vision of His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s led administration on police reform.
Meanwhile, the PSC in a statement today demanded that the Police should provide verifiable evidence to prove the allegations peddled against it as it is obvious that it is a case of giving a dog a bad name in order to hang it.
The Commission noted that due process was meticulously followed throughout the exercise and wish to assert its prerogative to exercise full control over recruitments into the Nigeria Police Force.
It therefore, appealed to President Bola Tinubu to protect it and rein in the Nigeria Police Force to respect the Constitutional Mandate of the Commission to recruit, stating that the Nigeria Police Force was created to enforce the law and not to circumvent it in whatever guise.
“It is the considered opinion of the Commission that the successful candidates should be allowed to proceed on training without delay”, the Commission said.
