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Applicants stranded at police recruitment
Hundreds of applicants seeking admission into the Nigerian Police Academy, Wudil in Kano state are stranded at the ongoing physical and credentials screening for the ninth regular course intakes.
Affected young applicants who were invited by the police across the 36 states and Federal capital territory, Abuja for the recruitment processes in Kano have faulted what they considered irregularities in the process.
While some of them lamented the outright omission of their names on the certified list after invitation, others worried over alleged lopsidedness among those certified for the next stage of the recruitment.
Especially, applicants wondered why their names were replaced after scoring above the benchmark of 60 points in the Computer Based Test (CBT) with those that scored less, calling for immediate investigation.
The Guardian learnt that over 10,000 applicants shortlisted nationwide for the professional police regimental and degree program were invited for the exercise out of hundreds of thousands that applied for the prestigious academy.
The young Nigerians who had arrived in Wudil, about 35 kilometers away from the city centre, since Monday for the week-long pre-admission exercise, were seen putting up in villages around the academy’s community.
The secondary school leavers invited for the physical screening are expecting to undergo Computer Based Test (CBT) to ascertain their academic resilience. Only those who scaled through the CBT are required to proceed to the next stage.
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” After CBT, applicants who successfully pass and scored above the cut-off mark will be invited to the next stage which is medical where they are certified fit for the task ahead. After that, those certified medically fit move to physical exercise.
” After the physical screening, applicants will be invited for a board interview. That is the last stage of the exercise. This is where admission is determined and at this level applicant will know whether or not the dream to attend police academy will actualize”, an insider told our correspondent.
However, some applicants who alleged high levels of irregularities in the exercise said they could not take part in the screening exercise because they could not find their names on the list of invited applicants.
An applicant who would want his name on print because of victimisation lamented that his name was omitted after travelling all the way from Sokoto state for the screening exercise.
Other complaints who sat for the CBT claimed to have scored above 60 points but realized their names are missing from the list of candidates for the next stage. One of them, whose name was withheld, argued that while scoring 63 points and could not process for medical, he claimed that he knows those that scored below the benchmark who were invited for medical screening.
” The process is not strictly followed because like me now, I scored 63 points and the benchmark is 60, yet I was not invited for medical screening which is the next stage. Incidentally, anyone that failed a particular stage will not move to the next stage which means I have failed.
“However, I have seen from our friends whom we sat for the same CBT and even score below 60 points and they got the invitation to proceed for the next exercise. This is not right at all. It is discouraging and I hope the authority will do something about it”.
Efforts to get a reaction to these complaints were not successful because the Commandant of the Academy, Assistant Inspector General of Police Ahmad Abdurrahman was said not available as at the time of the visit to the academy.
However, an insider who is not officially allowed to interface with journalists disclosed that applicants who have challenges whatsoever have been advised to channel their complaints to the appropriate authority for prompt attention.
The Commissioner of Police in Osun, Mohammed Abba, has pledged collaboration with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in tackling the menace of drug Abuse in the state.
A statement by the Police Public Relation Officer, CSP Yemisi Opalaola, on Thursday in Osogbo, said that the commissioner made the pledge while playing host to NDLEA State Commandant, Adetula Lawal.
Abba expressed his readiness to further strengthen the healthy partnership between the two agencies.
The police commissioner said that the fight against drug abuse required collective efforts.
According to him, many of those committing crimes are doing so under the influence of dangerous drugs.
Abba promised to provide the necessary support to the NDLEA in the state.
The statement quoted Lawal as commending the police commissioner’s efforts in combating crime and criminality in the state.
He reiterated the agency’s collaboration with the police, as a leading security agency to tackle the menace of drug abuse and trafficking in the state.
Financial experts have raised alarm that the implementation of the 4 per cent Free-On-Board (FOB) Levy on imports would exacerbate inflation in the country.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) report that the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Feb. 5 announced its introduction of the FOB levy on imports.
According to Abdullahi Maiwada, the spokesman of the service, the introduction of the levy was in line with the provisions of the Nigeria Customs Service Act (NCSA) 2023.
“In line with the provisions of Section 18 (1) of NCSA 2023, the NCS is implementing a 4 per cent charge on the Free On-Board (FOB) value of imports.
“The FOB charge, which is calculated based on the value of imported goods, including the cost of goods and transportation expenses incurred up to the port of loading, is essential to driving the effective operation of the service.”
However, a former Chairman, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Ogun Chapter, Dr Wale Adegbite and Evans Osabuohien, a Professor of Economics, said that the levy would worsen the nation’s inflation rate.
In separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Ota, Ogun, Adegbite and Osabuohien of the Department of Economics, Covenant University, said that the policy would negatively impact the economy.
The former MAN chairman said that the 4 per cent levy by the NCS “is a disaster and will worsen an already bad situation with multiple devastating effect on the economy.
” Why would the government inflict more hardship on the population as this new policy will certainly lead to more price increase, thus further increasing the country’s inflation rate.
“In addition, the masses will suffer more because of the impending price increase without any corresponding increase in income.”
Also, Osabuohien said that though the new FOB policy by the NCS was meant to generate more revenue for the federal government, but it would negatively impact on the economy.
He said that the NCS action would increase the cost of living of households.
The economist explained further that the development would increase the cost of operations of Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs), especially those companies that depend on imported raw materials for their production.
“This additional cost to be incurred through the 4 per cent increase in FOB would be transferred to the consumers and it would automatically trigger increase in the nation’s inflation rate,” Osabuohien said.
U.S. President Donald Trump plans to impose tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and aluminium imports into the United States, he said on Sunday.
“Any steel coming to the United States is going to have them, 25 per cent tariff,” Trump said, according to journalists travelling with the president. When questioned about tariffs on aluminium imports, Trump replied, “25 Per cent for both.”
Trump also confirmed his plan to announce further reciprocal tariffs in the coming week.
He spoke of an announcement on Tuesday or Wednesday.
“Very simply, if they charge us, we charge them, Trump told reporters, adding that the tariffs would go into effect almost immediately.”
U.S. tariffs of 10 per cent on Chinese goods took effect from Feb. 4.
The planned tariffs of 25 per cent on Mexico and Canada were suspended for an initial period of 30 days following promises from the two countries to increase border security measures.
Trump won November’s presidential election promising to slap high tariffs on foreign goods to reduce U.S. trade deficits.
He implemented a number of duties during his first term from 2017 to 2021.
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