Only 10,000 men have been recruited in the last four years since the approval.
Many applicants for constable in the Nigeria Police Force paid N700,000 and above each to secure the job in the recent nationwide recruitment by the police.
President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019 approved the recruitment of 10,000 police constables annually to beef up security in the country.
However, only 10,000 men have been recruited in the last four years since the approval. Ideally, no fewer than 40,000 officers are supposed to have been enlisted into the Force by now to address the lingering manpower challenge the police are facing, in line with the directive of the President.
When the approval was given, the arrangement was that 10,000 men would be recruited annually, in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022, but the disagreement between the leadership of the Police Service Commission (PSC) and Usman Baba, Inspector-General of Police with his predecessor halted the exercise between 2019 and 2022, when the issue was partially resolved.
Multiple sources told SaharaReporters that some of the enlisted applicants currently undergoing six months of intensive training in basic, intermediate and advanced police studies at the four colleges and 12 police training schools across the country paid over N700,000 to be picked.
The sources identified one ASP Uba and a junior officer known as Ali, both attached to the police force headquarters as the masterminds of the recruitment scandal.
Some applicants who paid less than N700,000 but were not asked to resume training were also threatened by these policemen who allegedly boasted that they “are untouchable and have superiors we also give money to”.
SaharaReporters also gathered that Uba and Ali colluded with some National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) officials to reduce the ages of some of the applicants.
Among the requirements listed by the police authorities is that applicants must have their national identification number (NIN) and a functional email address.
Also, applicants must be Nigerians and be aged between 17 and 25 as of the time of putting in their application.
“So, many of those chosen are people above 25 years old. What they do is simple and it is in connivance with NIMC (National Identity Management Commission) officials. They’ll use different thumbprints of two different people to change their National Identity Cards and enroll them into the Force. Like I said, it’s N700,000 to do it – the illegal reduction of age and recruitment as constable,” an applicant told SaharaReporters.
“About 15 people I know did the same thing; one of them is popular. He is one of the enlisted applicants and currently receiving training at the Police College in Maiduguri. He is from Askira Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, he stays in Maraba Nyanya in Abuja. I’m just saying all this to show you I know him very well.
“These 15 people I said earlier are overage applicants but all of them are in training camps now after paying N700,000 each to some police officers attached to the Force headquarters in Abuja. Those officers took them to NIMC registration centre and used their right hand and the left hand of another person to capture a new national identity card with the required age to enable them to get their way into the Force.
“I know this because I applied and have all the requirements but those police officers told me to bring N700,000 too. I told them I’m just 22 and not overage but they told me to bring N200,000 to be recruited. So I paid the N200,000 to one ASP Uba but guess what, I wasn’t called to resume training. I asked him and his boys to return my money but they threatened to kill me.
“But the applicant from Askira Uba Local Government of Borno state, with the help of these fraudulent officers, he was able to reduce his age by 10 years. He has a national identity card with his original age which is 33 years. He was born in 1989. When he realised he could not apply, with the help of the police officers to whom he paid N700,000, they took him to another national identity card registration centre and used his right hand and the left hand of another person for his biometric capturing and made another national identity card for him after reducing his age to 23 years. He now claimed he was born in 1999.”
Another source told SaharaReporters that his brother paid N900,000 to be recruited.
“We paid over N900,000 for my brother to join the Force. I had to sell my motorcycle in order to raise part of the money. He is currently undergoing training at Maiduguri. Not only us, but so many people here in Maraba Nyanya, behind Orange market, paid and were recruited. Though I heard some people who paid between N200,000 and N500,000 were not picked and their money wasn’t refunded,” he said.
When contacted, Muyiwa Adejobi, Nigeria Police Force spokesperson said the police authorities were not aware of the fraudulent acts of the personnel.
He asked Nigerians to always contact senior police officers for clarification as recruitment into the force is free of charge and not for sale in any way.
“We are not aware of this. However, the IGP has directed that these allegations should be investigated, while we urge those affected or those with useful information that can help us in our investigation to come up with reports/documents,” he told SaharaReporters.
“Also, we still urge Nigerians to always contact senior officers, Force PRO, DIG Training and Development, etc. for clarification should anyone demand money as recruitment into the police force is free of charge, not for sale in any way.”