…Citizens allege job racketeering in corridors of power
For over six years now, there has been a blanket ‘embargo’ on employment imposed on the Federal Civil Service by the government, with no sign of lifting soon.
In March 2020, the government, under Muhammadu Buhari, former president, placed the embargo, citing the COVID-19 pandemic and a failing economy.
Buttressing the rationale for the embargo, in 2021, Chris Ngige, the then Minister of Labour, explained that the embargo was due to paucity of funds caused by the economy, which was in a bad shape then.
Then, he also pointed the unemployed to government’s home support programmes like the conditional cash transfer and others, and insisted that such money was meant for the poor in the society.
