The Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board has announced that its recruitment portal will open on October 28 to enable candidates shortlisted for the first batch of 30,000 paramilitary personnel to verify their status and undergo compulsory drug tests.
The Board’s Secretary, retired Maj. Gen. Abdulmalik Jibrin, made this known while briefing journalists in Abuja on Thursday following the board’s meeting.
According to him, the portal will remain accessible until November 13. He urged candidates who successfully passed the oral interview and were shortlisted to log in, confirm their status and obtain the code needed for the drug screening.
Jibrin added that the candidates would take the mandatory tests at designated National Drug Law Enforcement Agency offices in their respective states before travelling to Abuja to collect their appointment letters.
He said the requirement was in line with the Federal Government’s directive that prospective employees must provide evidence that they were free from illegal drug use before receiving their appointment letters.
He said, “The board has agreed that, since candidates have been waiting, the recruitment portal will open on October 28 and remain open until November 13. Candidates who have reached the oral interview stage are expected to check their status on the portal, obtain a code and undergo a mandatory drug test with the NDLEA, in keeping with the Federal Government’s directive that every prospective employee must present a certificate confirming they are free from the use of illegal drugs before collecting an appointment letter.
“It is after that that they will proceed, they will all converge in Abuja to collect their letters of appointment, and that is the documentation. So, you must come along with a certificate which shows you are free from drug abuse before you collect your letter,” he said.
The board secretary clarified that candidates would not be required to pay for the drug test, as the government would bear the cost.
“So no candidate will be charged. If any candidate reports and is asked to give money, let him report to the nearest security agency’s office,” he said.
Jubril said the exercise formed part of President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to recruit 120,000 personnel into the country’s paramilitary services within his first four-year tenure.
He added that the board was working on the first batch of 30,000 recruits under the plan.
The recruitment covers the Nigerian Correctional Service, Nigerian Immigration Service, Federal Fire Service and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
Jubril urged successful candidates to comply with the stipulated process and present themselves for the mandatory drug test within the period specified for the portal exercise.