Recruitment: Tarabans Kick Against N3,500 Charges For Application Form

 

Parents and prospective applicants for the recruitment exercise announced by the Taraba State Civil Service Commission, TCSC, have decried the decision of the Commission to charge the sum  three thousand five hundred naira, N3500, as application fee, describing it "outrageous, total extortion and insensitive."

 

The Commission has in Jalingo, on Monday 5th July, 2021, announced a recruitment exercise following its approval granted its by Governor Darius Dickson Ishaku of Taraba State for the employment of qualified and interested candidates into the State Civil Service, according to the document seen by Taraba Truth and Facts.

 

The document further stated that, prospective applicants are required to submit an application online via the state Civil Service Commission's website,  

 

 

However, attempts by several prospective applicants to log in on the Commission's website and generate acknowledgement slip was greeted by a request to make payment of three thousand-five hundred naira, 3500, to obtain the recruitment form as processing fee. The fee also includes bank charges.

 

Some of the prospective applicants who preferred anonymity for the fear of being victimized when our Correspondent sought their opinions over the fee charged by the Commission said it was very annoying as the State government has resorted to making money from  unemployed youths who are, according to them, still being catered for by their parents who suffered to train them in schools.

 

" Where can source that amount of money to obtain the form", one of the prospective applicants said, "employments into the civil service in other states are free but the Taraba State Civil Service Commission, TCSC has turned itself into a revenue generation agency for the government."

 

Another applicant who spoke to Taraba Truth and Facts Newspaper called for a transparent process in selecting deserving applicants for the employment, noting that its insensitive to charge unemployed young people before given jobs.

  "Nobody knows how many people the Commission  is going to employ,  but I can assure you that  more than a million are going to obtain the form because  of the level of unemployment in Taraba State, we all are looking for government jobs. My major concern at the moment is the transparency of the process, the recruiting agency must come out to assure the public that politicians wont  share the slots to their children," the applicant added.

 

While another prospective applicant said that he had resigned to fate as the charges are the first requirement for getting the job, some are however appealing to the State Government to make the application free of all charges, since it's the responsibility of government to provide jobs.

 

Similarly, a Jalingo resident wrote on social media, expressing his annoyance over the fee charged for the form, describing it as inhumane and insensitive bearing in mind the current socio-economic situation in the country and called the authorities to have a second look at its decision.

 

 "We are appealing to our representatives and Taraba state government to prevail on Taraba State Civil Service Commission to rescind its decision to collect over 3000 naira for application forms from unemployed youth. Given the unbearable socio-economic situation and conditions these applicants are going through, it is unacceptable and insensitive to take advantage of the situation to milk out money from them." 

 

However, a staff at the Commission who simply gave his name as Isaac, defended the position of the State CSC, saying that it is a normal routine and a means of generating revenue for the Commission to process the applications.