The Federal Character Commission (FCC) has called on the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to immediately suspend its ongoing recruitment exercise over alleged violations of Federal Character principles and concerns about shortlisted applicants who were prevented from proceeding to training.

Abdulwasiu Bawa-Allah, Chairman of the FCC Committee on Financial Services, made the demand during a press briefing in Abuja on Thursday, October 22, 2026.

He said the commission was not invited to monitor the recruitment exercise despite its constitutional responsibility to promote, monitor and enforce compliance with federal character requirements across federal establishments.

Bawa-Allah said the allegations surrounding the recruitment process required a thorough investigation, adding that the commission’s correspondence to the Customs Service over its concerns had allegedly been ignored.

He explained that the personal and financial consequences for affected applicants who believed their selection would lead to training and formal engagement.

“Some affected candidates resigned from their jobs, trained replacements, incurred substantial expenses and made important personal decisions,” Bawa-Allah said.

“They did all these with the expectation that their published selection would lead to training and formal engagement.”

The FCC committee chairman stressed that the commission was not an optional institution that government agencies could involve only when convenient.

“It is worthy to note that the FCC is not an advisory body that federal establishments may recognise only when convenient,” he said.

“It is a constitutional institution established to promote, monitor and enforce compliance with federal character principles in appointments and recruitment across ministries, departments and agencies.”

Bawa-Allah said candidates selected through federal recruitment exercises must be aligned with approved distribution formulas covering all states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.

He maintained that the requirements were designed to protect merit, equity, transparency and the right of qualified Nigerians to fair consideration, irrespective of their state of origin or other personal circumstances.

“These safeguards protect merit, equity, transparency and every qualified Nigerian’s right to fair consideration, regardless of state of origin, ethnicity, religion, political affiliation or social connection,” he said.

Expressing concern about the absence of FCC monitoring, Bawa-Allah said the circumstances surrounding the Customs recruitment exercise raised questions that needed to be addressed through a transparent review.

“It is deeply troubling that the NCS conducted this exercise without the commission’s monitoring and oversight,” he said.

He, however, rejected any suggestion that the commission was seeking the employment of candidates who did not meet the prescribed requirements.

“For clarity, the commission is not asking that unqualified candidates be recruited. The FCC does not replace merit,” Bawa-Allah said.

“It requires suitably qualified candidates from all parts of Nigeria to receive equitable opportunities through transparent, verifiable and nationally inclusive procedures.”

The FCC committee chairman called on the Customs Service and its Comptroller-General to suspend the recruitment exercise immediately and submit relevant recruitment records to the commission for examination.

The commission is seeking documents that would enable it to assess whether the process complied with applicable federal character requirements and the approved distribution arrangements for recruitment into federal establishments.

The FCC’s published recruitment procedures state that federal institutions are expected to invite the commission to monitor recruitment exercises. The procedures also provide for the reconciliation of successful candidates with approved distribution formulas and the issuance of a Certificate of Compliance for the relevant recruitment exercise.  

The demand follows complaints by applicants who said they were prevented from proceeding to the Customs training college despite appearing on the published recruitment shortlist.

In a statement issued on October 19, the NCS acknowledged receiving complaints from applicants who had been screened out and subsequently barred from proceeding to training despite being shortlisted.

However, the Customs Service clarified that appearing on the final shortlist did not automatically guarantee enlistment, explaining that candidates were still required to satisfy the prescribed verification and screening requirements. It also opened a channel for aggrieved applicants to submit complaints for case-by-case review.  

The competing concerns have placed the recruitment exercise under scrutiny, with the FCC demanding records to determine whether the process complied with federal character principles, while the NCS maintains that candidates must meet all applicable recruitment standards.

The FCC’s demand for suspension does not, by itself, establish that the Customs Service violated the law. The allegations will require examination of the relevant recruitment records and the circumstances surrounding the exclusion of shortlisted candidates.

Bawa-Allah urged the Customs Service to cooperate with the commission and provide the requested documents to facilitate a review. He said the FCC would consider the investigative, compliance and enforcement mechanisms available under the Constitution, its establishing legislation and applicable recruitment guidelines if violations were established.

The commission maintained that its intervention was intended to protect merit, fairness, transparency and equitable representation, while ensuring that suitably qualified Nigerians from across the federation receive fair consideration in public-sector recruitment.