Army: Controversy as Kaduna recruits claimed to be Lagosians

Citizens fault recruitment process

However, many Nigerians said the viral video was a reflection of the lack of scrutiny and transparency in recruitment processes in government institutions.

While expressing disappointment in the handlers of the recruitment exercise, a Kaduna resident, Muhammad Sani, said, “It would have been fine if these guys (the candidates) were of northern extraction but born and brought up in Lagos.

“In areas like Agege, Mile 12, Ijora, and Idi-Araba, many (residents) are from the North. But these (the candidates) are not Lagos-based. This menace is why it’s difficult for many southerners to attain the peak of their military career because of the hijacking of their slots.

“This is wrong and the Nigerian Army needs to correct this by rejecting these guys and giving those slots back to Lagosians.”

But a Lagos resident, Richard Ademiluyi, told our correspondent that though the focus should be on whether or not the military recruits met the requirements to become indigenes of the state, any false claim should be met with prosecution.

“I think the question we should ask is whether they met the requirement for an indigene of Lagos State as specified in our constitution. Speaking Yoruba might not be a yardstick to judge indigeneship. For example, my two daughters were born in Borno State but they don’t speak Hausa or Kanuri.

“Some people qualify to be indigenes of states by birth or residency. But if the certificates of state of origin presented by these guys were fabricated or found to be issued unlawfully to them, then the state government should step in and prosecute them.”

Another resident, Mrs Abimbola Oladunmoye, described the action of the candidates in the viral video as one that had robbed the authentic indigenes of the state of their privileges.

“This situation is truly disheartening. I find it concerning to see how northerners are representing Lagos State in the Nigerian Army, claiming to be indigenes of the state and posing with indigenship certificates.

“It is essential that we not only address this issue with the individuals involved but also hold the issuers of these certificates at the local government areas accountable.”

Northern group kicks

But the development did not go down well with some northern youths. The youth wing of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union while condemning the arrest of the job applicants, said the Constitution did not define citizenship by language.

The union’s National Coordinator, Isaac John, in a statement on Friday, said, “It is with great concern that the Southern Kaduna youths have observed a distressing video featuring four youths originally from Kaduna State, currently residing in Lagos. These individuals, earnestly seeking enlistment in the Nigerian Army, faced unwarranted humiliation, denial, and even arrest during the state screening process as of the time of composing this statement.

“The reasons, as portrayed in the video, revolve around their inability to speak the Yoruba language and their non-citizenship status in Lagos, notwithstanding their longstanding domicile in the state.”

“In the light of these events, we respectfully urge the Chief of Army Staff and the Chief of Defence Staff to investigate this matter promptly and urgently. Furthermore, we implore the Kaduna State Government to establish a committee to thoroughly examine this matter, to prevent any recurrence.”

Not a new trade

Checks by our correspondent showed that for applicants to legitimately obtain their letters of indigeneship or local government of origin certificates, they are expected to visit their respective council secretariats in their states of origin.

Applicants are also required to provide documents such as birth certificates, two passports, their community names, and their mother’s maiden name, in addition to paying a specified amount ranging from N2,000 to N8,000 to the state government to obtain the document.

In some council offices, particularly in Lagos State, applicants are mandated to provide their Lagos State Residents Registration Agency card which indicates that they are indigenes, along with a letter from a monarch in their towns or from their areas.

However, findings by Saturday PUNCH showed that many non-indigenes illegally obtained letters of indigeneship for employment from local governments other than the ones they originally came from with the connivance of some corrupt civil servants.

The Federal Character Commission defines an indigene of a local government as a person “whose parents or any of whose grandparents was or is an indigene of the local government concerned; or who is accepted as an indigene by the local government, provided that no person shall lay claim to more than one local government.”

It also stated that “an indigene of a state is a person who is an indigene of one of the local governments in that state, provided that no person shall lay claim to more than one state or a state and the Federal Capital Territory.”

Speaking with our correspondent, a civil servant, Joel Oladipo, said obtaining indigenship certificates fraudulently in Nigeria was not a new practice as many used it to cut corners during job recruitment.

“This is not something new; it happens with recruitment into federal parastatals also. I recall when my brother went for the Nigerian Ports Authority screening.

“He took all the examinations and attended the interviews but when the list came out for Lagos State, we saw the names of people who were not citizens of the state,” he said.

“We were told that a list was sent down from Abuja and that it was the final list of those recruited. This trend is even more prevalent in the North. I was told that some southerners also take up slots in northern states.

“I guess states need to do more to ensure their indigenes aren’t shortchanged. The people who should be blamed are the issuers of these certificates. There should be criteria for acquiring the LGA certificate of a state,” he added.