The
Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), the All Progressives Congress (APC),
the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and other groups have called for the
sack of the Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro, over the incident
which claimed the lives of 19 applicants.This is just as the families of the deceased asked the government to release the corpses to them for burial.
Vice-President of the Nigerian Labor Congress (NLC) and General Secretary of the Textile Workers Union of Nigeria, Issa Aremu, said on Sunday that the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) must be prosecuted over the death of many applicants who went for the NIS screening at the weekend.
“The issues of unemployment and job creation should dominate discussion at the National Conference billed to commence on Monday, March 17 (today), 2014. The crisis of unemployment is one issue that cuts across all the regions of the country,”he said.
Speaking at a press conference in Kaduna on Sunday, Aremu said the death of the unemployed was a tragedy for the nation where millions of applicants had scrambled for the 4,500 employment vacancies declared by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).
“Again, avoidable deaths, tears and sorrow characterised a simple recruitment exercise of 4,500. This unacceptable development runs against the best employment practices as contained in Nigeria’s Labour Act and relevant conventions and resolutions of International Labour Organization (ILO) guiding decent work as subscribed to by Nigeria,” he said.
“Just as it was in 2008 (six years ago) the gender dimension of the deaths involved females and pregnant women in Benin. When we consider the pregnant applicants, we have invariably also killed unborn applicants. For a country that just marked International Women’s Day with fanfare, the deaths of female applicants do gross violence to the federal and state governments’ claim to respect human and women rights. These nation-wide unprovoked deaths have negatively dented the notorious image of Nigeria as a country in which lives are being casually wasted in the communities, on the roads and now at recruitment centres.
“When tragedies get addictive and widespread, as it is regrettably becoming the regular trademark of the Nigeria Immigration Service, these are no more “accidents” or a flash but clearly avoidable incidents. Indeed the deaths are nothing less than industrial murders whose perpetrators are known. Nigerians do not need another probe panel on this tragedy. In 2008, under Yar’Adua-led administration after similar carnage called recruitment, the Federal Government instituted a probe into the circumstances which led to the death of scores of applicants nationwide. The outcome of the probe was never known. Nigerians are probes-fatigue. Indeed the probe has not stopped this weekend’s industrial murders. This certainly should not be another opportunity for probe-panel beating.”
APC calls for investigation
The All Progressives Congress (APC) on Sunday, called for investigation into the `needless deaths’ of some job seekers at some venues of job test of Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS).
No fewer than 19 people were reported dead among the over one million applicants on Saturday at some centres of the test for the NIS jobs.
APC Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in a statement in Lagos, described the incident as a direct consequence of unemployment plaguing the nation.
The party, according to the statement, expressed dissatisfaction over the deaths of the job seekers, adding that the Minister of Interior should bear the direct responsibility for the deaths.
The statement said that APC commiserated with the families of the victims and wished those injured speedy recovery.
It decried government’s inability to create jobs for the nation’s youths, stressing that the number of jobless Nigerians had the reached alarming rate.
“Massive mindless looting of the public funds that could have been used to create millions of jobs end up in the deep pockets of corrupt government officials without any consequence.
“The truth has been laid bare — 5,000 or so vacancies declared by NIS attracted over six million applicants, from which over half a million was shortlisted, according to published reports,’’ it stated.
Joblessness, cause of insecurity —TUC
The Trade Union Congress (TUC) said it was extremely grieved by the death of young Nigerians during stampedes at the recruitment centres by the Nigeria Immigration Service in Abuja, Lagos, Rivers, Minna, Gombe, and Benin venues of the examination on Saturday.
To this end, the congress demanded an immediate investigation into the matter, and called on the Federal Government to probe the reported sums of money collected from these young Nigerians with a promise to giving them employment.
In a statemnt issued by the President of TUC, Comrade Bobboi Kaigama and the Secretary General, Comrade Musa Lawal, the congress said said it was shocked and deeply saddened by the news for the fact that the young citizens were at the exercise not only to secure jobs, but to be allowed the opportunity to contribute towards the development of their fatherland.
“This incident of course goes to show the level of unemployment in the country. That millions of youths applied for less than 4,000 vacancies in NIS shows that the insecurity in the land is caused by joblessness,” it said.
Death of Nigerians “unfortunate” - Tambuwal
The Speaker, House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, has described as “unfortunate” the death of some Nigerians on Saturday at recruitment centres of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).
This is contained in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Mallam Imam Imam, on Sunday in Abuja.
According to the speaker, the death of the innocent youths was sorrowful and regrettable.
He said it was more regrettable considering the fact that they were at the screening centres in search of jobs that would better their lots and that of their loved ones.
Tambuwal urged the authorities concerned to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the tragedy, and advised them to map out strategies to prevent future occurrences.
Sack or suspend Moro, DG Immigration now— TAPAN
President Goodluck Jonathan has been urged not to allow the Ministry of Interior, led by Abba Moro, spearhead any investigation into the immigration recruitment tragedy to ensure its outcome is not compromised or tainted.
Jonathan, who was also urged to either sack or suspended Moro and the Director-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, David Shikfu, pending outcome of the investigation, and find out who was the consultant hired by Moro who recommended that each applicant paid a non-refundable fee of N1,000. Over 700,000 were at various centers to jostle for 5,000 places.
The Tax Payers Association of Nigeria (TAPAN), made this call in Abuja against the backdrop of scores of job seeking Nigerians who lost their in the stampede that ensued at various centers nationwide as a result of shoddy preparations by the ministry and the Nigeria Immigration Service .
In a statement in Abuja by TAPAN’s President, Phillip Illukholo and Board of Trustee chairman, Valentine Nzekwe, the association.
Moro’s claim on the cause of the Abuja tragedy where no fewer than 10 persons died, conflicted with that of the Immigration Service.
Moro claimed the ministry shortlisted 80,000 applicants, and that several of those at the Abuja stadium were not shortlisted. But the Immigration service said they expected 100,000 on Saturday.
TAPAN wondered why the minister would direct that 80,000 persons converge at the National Stadium with a sitting capacity of 60,000.
CNPP mourns
The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) has joined Nigerians to mourn the tragedy of gross unemployment, which claimed scores of lives of innocent youths that went out in search of Nigeria Immigration Service vacant placements.
Speaking through its National Publicity Secreatry, Osita Okechukwu, the CNPP condoled the families of the victims, prayed to God for the repose of their souls and groaned that these ambitious youths and pregnant mothers of our ancestry died hungry, poor and in a state of agony in the midst of plenty.
Okechukwu noted that “the tragedy of unemployment is the outcome of Federal Government of Nigeria’s nebulous and inchoate economic policy, which regrettably posits that the government has no business in business and the monumental corruption, which govern the reproachable economic policy.
“Otherwise, if the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led Federal Government had in the past 15 years invested our unprecedented oil and gas revenue to critical infrastructure like refineries, modern railways, power supply, there is no way over 4,00,000 youths will pay N1, 000 to chase less than 3,000 jobs in a single department of the state across the country,” he added.
How clash between consultant, Immigration led to stampede
Details emerged on Sunday over the controversy that led to the stampede at the screening exercise for Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) on Saturday.
Sources told the Nigerian Tribune that the clash between the NIS and the consultants originally mandated to conduct the exercise led to the melee.
It was gathered that the consultants, Drexel Nigeria Limited, had collated the applications for the NIS job across the country and had planned to conduct the exercise in a different manner.
A source said that Drexel fixed the application form at N1,000 per candidate and received 743,000 applications.
It was gathered that when the Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro, asked the NIS to conduct the examination, the consultants replied that funds for the exercise was not part of its consultancy.
The NIS was then said to have taken up the exercise without required funds.
A source said that the Immigration service could not get the payment for the different venues on time and that the case of National Stadium, Abuja, was pathetic as applicants who went to the venue at 6.00 a.m. could not gain entry until the service paid at 10.00 a.m.
We are sorry —FG •To pay medical bills of injured
The Federal Government has described as unfortunate the incident that led to the death of the applicants in stampedes at the National Stadium, Abuja, and four other centres across the country during the Nigeria Immigration Service recruitment aptitude test on Saturday.
The government said: “We are sorry to the members of the families who lost their loved ones and called for understanding in order to ameliorate the ugly situation, while also promising to pick the medical bills of the injured persons still recuperating in the hospitals.”
Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro, who paid on-the-spot-assessment visit to the National Stadium where the tragedy occurred in Abuja and to empathise with the victims on admission in the National Hospital, Abuja, also said a committee would be set up to investigate the cause of the stampede and advised the government appropriately.
He confirmed that seven persons were killed in the Abuja stampede, while 11 others who were still receiving treatment at the National Hospital are in stable condition.
Moro, who revealed that only 526, 650 people applied for the exercise nationwide, wondered why such mammoth crowd turned out for the test in Abuja alone. The 60,000 capacity National Stadium was overstretched on Saturday by candidates who turned out for the examination.
Panel to probe Immigration recruitment tragedy —Minister
Interior Minister, Abba Moro, has vowed to ensure the investigation of the death of applicants during the test conducted at the weekend by the Nigeria Immigration Service.
Moro, during a visit to the National Hospital in Abuja on Sunday, expressed sadness about the incident and confirmed that 19 people have been discharged, while 11 were still receiving treatment.
He also ordered the immediate release of the dead bodies to their relations after proper documentation.
He said: “So far, 11 persons are still on admission. Most of them have recovered from the shock of yesterday and they are in a very stable condition. And five female and two males died. I have promised that the Ministry of Interior and the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) will do everything possible to ameliorate the consequences of the stampede. I think it is premature to talk about employment.
“I have seen the situation and it is unfortunate. If you look at it, you will see that it was all a sign that people attempted to break into the stadium forcefully and in the process people were trampled upon and unfortunately they lost their lives.
“Just like it is in other parts of the country, the reason for the decentralization of the exercise across the states was to ensure that we have reasonable numbers in all the centers that can be controlled. But unfortunately, the preliminary information that is available to me shows that people who didn’t apply were also trying to gain entrance.
“In a stadium like this that has the capacity of 70 thousand people and we had registered people. But unfortunate several unauthorized persons came in here especially pregnant women. In a paramilitary situation I am surprised that pregnant women would want to come and partake in this exercise that involves physical exercises.”
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