Federal Character Commission Staff Took N200,000 From Jobseeker but Failed to Deliver
Joy Uchenna Ajemba, a staff member of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), collected N200,000 from Friday Okocha, a jobseeker, to assist him in securing a job at the Federal Polytechnic, Orogun, Delta, in March 2023, but failed to deliver.
The FCC is an agency of the federal government established to ensure equity and fairness in the distribution of jobs among the various federating units across the country.
In Nigeria, with over 36 states and over 700 constitutionally recognised local government areas, some regions have decried marginalisation in governance and a lack of representation in the civil service.
It is for this reason that the FCC was established. However, the FCC has been accused of failing to ensure fairness in job distribution and job racketeering.
Friday Okocha told FIJ that he met Ajemba through a relative she had assisted in securing a job in a government agency, which gave him the confidence that she would help him.
“I believed her because I heard her husband was a pastor. At first, she didn’t ask for money, but she eventually did and told me she needed to settle some people,” said Okocha.
“She promised me that everything would be settled before June 2023 and I would get the job, but I never got it. The job application is no longer open, and I told her to refund me, but she is no longer responding to my calls and messages.”
FIJ sent Ajemba a message on Tuesday. She admitted to collecting the money from Okafor and added that the polytechnic had yet to invite the selected job applicants for documentation. She also said that she was bereaved and mourning the loss of her father.
Again, FIJ called her on Wednesday morning. She told this reporter she was not in the mood to speak as she was still mourning the death of her father and was not allowed to make phone calls.
When FIJ informed Okafor about Ajemba’s response, he said she had told him the same thing in February, just before she stopped responding to his calls and text messages.
This is not the first time a staff member of the FCC has been accused of job racketeering. In August 2023, the National Assembly probed Muheeba Dankaka, the FCC chairman, for the allotment of employment slots in exchange for financial gratification.
