Cross River Government: LG Recruitment Cancellation Due to Racketeering

• The Cross River State Government has nullified a controversial local government recruitment exercise following a panel's report.
• The panel found the recruitment fundamentally flawed due to widespread job racketeering, lack of executive approvals, and breaches of public service ethics.
• Only 821 legitimately approved personnel, including 83 CROSIEC staff, will be retained on the payroll.
• A new, transparent recruitment process has been approved to hire 4,000 fresh personnel, with affected individuals encouraged to reapply.
• The government will pay compensatory benefits to those phased out and plans to investigate and prosecute culpable individuals for the illegal scheme.

The panel found the recruitment fundamentally flawed due to widespread job racketeering, lack of executive approvals, and breaches of public service ethics.

The Cross River State Government has officially nullified a contentious recruitment exercise previously conducted by the now-defunct Local Government Service Commission. This significant decision, which effectively constitutes a widespread Cross River local government hiring nullified, was publicly disclosed in a statement issued on Wednesday by Professor Anthony Enoh, the Secretary to the State Government. The announcement follows the submission of a comprehensive report by a Panel of Enquiry tasked with investigating the exercise.

Simultaneously with the cancellation, the state government has approved a fresh recruitment drive aimed at filling 4,000 positions. This new process is slated to be transparent, leveraging digital platforms and modern procedures to ensure fairness and efficiency. The move to invalidate the prior hiring and initiate a new one underscores the administration's commitment to rectifying past irregularities and establishing a more credible public service.

The Panel of Enquiry's report painted a damning picture of the original recruitment, concluding that the entire process, which reportedly occurred between 2024 and 2025, was fundamentally flawed. Key findings highlighted a profound lack of legitimacy, absence of executive approvals from the Governor, and pervasive instances of high-scale job racketeering. The report also detailed the commercialisation of employment slots, indicating that positions were effectively sold rather than awarded on merit.

Further revelations from the Cross River job racketeering panel report pointed to institutional complicity, ineptitude within the system, and a clear breach of public service ethics. Professor Enoh's statement emphasized that the panel specifically faulted the exercise for its non-transparency, absence of accountability, and blatant non-compliance with extant laws and financial regulations governing public sector recruitment. These systemic failures led to the outright invalidation and cancellation of the entire exercise.

In light of the panel's findings, the Cross River State Government has outlined a clear path forward. Only 821 personnel, whose recruitment was duly approved by the Governor, including 83 staff members of the Cross River State Independent Electoral Commission (CROSIEC), will be retained on the government payroll. All other individuals who gained employment through unauthorized or illegal recruitment processes will be phased out, though legitimate employees of the Local Government Service Commission who were lawfully recruited will continue to receive their salaries.

For those affected by this difficult but necessary decision, the government has approved compensatory benefits. Furthermore, individuals possessing the requisite qualifications are encouraged to reapply through the new Cross River 4000 fresh recruitment process. The state government also announced plans for a comprehensive unbundling and sanitisation of the entire payroll, alongside commencing investigations and prosecuting all persons found culpable in the illicit recruitment scheme. The Prof Anthony Enoh statement reiterated the government's sympathy for victims of what was described as a 'criminal enterprise' but stressed that responsibility cannot be assumed for unauthorized appointments.

The revelations surrounding the nullified Cross River LG recruitment underscore significant legal and ethical breaches within the public service. The findings of widespread job racketeering and commercialisation of employment slots point to potential criminal offenses, exposing government officials involved to prosecution under relevant Nigeria public sector recruitment laws. The institutional complicity and breach of public service ethics further highlight a systemic failure that undermines public trust and fair governance.

This development signals potential legal challenges for individuals affected by the nullified recruitment, who may need to navigate their rights regarding the cancellation and the new recruitment process. The government's commitment to investigations and prosecution emphasizes the serious nature of the infractions, aiming to deter future misconduct and ensure adherence to ethical standards in public sector hiring. The state has appealed for calm from the public, particularly those impacted, urging them to utilize the new recruitment window as it reaffirms its dedication to building a professional, transparent, efficient, and people-centred public service.

This development signals potential legal challenges for individuals affected by the nullified recruitment and exposes government officials to prosecution for job racketeering and breach of public service ethics. Lawyers should advise clients on their rights regarding the cancellation and the new recruitment process, while compliance officers in public sector entities must review their hiring practices to ensure strict adherence to extant laws and regulations.

Source: Original reporting via The Punch