From Celestine Ihejirika, Jalingo
The Chairman of the Taraba State Civil Service Commission (CSC), Hon. Philip Kundila, has cautioned prospective applicants participating in the ongoing sale of employment forms and online registration against fraudsters seeking to take advantage of the exercise.
Kundila also dismissed allegations of diversion of proceeds from the sale of the forms, describing the claims as laughable and the handiwork of enemies of the state.
He made the remarks in an exclusive interview with our correspondent in Jalingo on Thursday , urging members of the public, particularly applicants, to be vigilant against individuals going around to defraud unsuspecting persons under the guise of helping them secure government employment.
The CSC chairman advised applicants not to patronise such individuals, stressing that employment forms are sold and online registration carried out directly through the Civil Service Commission’s office, while payments are made through designated Zenith Bank branches in Jalingo.
On the allegation of diversion of money generated from the sale of the forms, Kundila explained that no personnel of the Civil Service Commission has access to the proceeds, as all payments are channelled into the state government account and not individual accounts.
He urged those spreading the allegations to always verify their facts before reaching conclusions, warning that unverified claims could mislead members of the public.
Speaking on the recruitment exercise, the CSC chairman disclosed that about 30,000 prospective applicants had so far shown interest in the exercise, while the commission had recorded the sale of 16,000 forms.
He said the official government-approved figure for employment stood at 1,805.
Kundila further indicated that the commission might conclude the exercise before next weekend, but expressed concern that many applicants who obtained their forms through bank tellers were yet to return them to the commission.
He therefore appealed to such applicants to submit their forms before the end of next week.
The CSC chairman also stressed that the commission would not compromise on the qualification requirements for the recruitment, adding that merit would be a major consideration in selecting successful candidates irrespective of their backgrounds.
Kundila identified some of the challenges confronting the exercise as the large turnout of applicants, poor network connectivity affecting online registration and pressure from politicians and senior government officials seeking consideration for their applicants and relatives, among others.
