The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has disqualified 397 applicants during the physical screening stage of its 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, citing reasons that include substance abuse, forged credentials, and age violations. The service has also alleged that some protesting applicants attempted to gain employment through unofficial means, while pledging to reinstate any candidates found to have been removed erroneously.
Customs Spokesperson Addresses Controversy
NCS spokesperson Abdullahi Maiwada made the allegations in an interview with BBC Hausa, as translated by Daily Trust. He stated that appearing on the successful candidates' list did not guarantee a job offer, as all shortlisted candidates were required to pass additional screening checks before advancing to training.
"Among those who are currently complaining, some attempted to use backdoor channels to gain entry, which is why they were removed," Maiwada said.
Reasons for Disqualification
The service confirmed that the 397 applicants were disqualified during physical screening, with reasons ranging from substance abuse and physical fitness failures to documentation irregularities. Maiwada noted that some candidates tested positive for medical conditions such as Hepatitis B and high blood pressure, while others submitted forged credentials or were found to have exceeded the permitted age limit.
The controversy centres on reports that candidates whose names appeared on the published list were subsequently replaced by individuals who had not taken part in the exercise at all. The NCS said it had received formal complaints from affected applicants and committed to investigating each case.
"If we find that any candidate was removed erroneously, we will promptly reinstate them," Maiwada said.
Advice for Candidates and Next Steps
The spokesperson also responded to concerns raised by applicants who resigned from existing jobs after seeing their names on the list, only to be dropped at the screening stage. Maiwada said the service had cautioned applicants against leaving their current employment before the process was concluded.
"We warned them not to terminate their current employment because being invited to this stage does not guarantee a job," he said.
He clarified that even candidates who cleared the screening stage would need to complete a full training programme, including examinations, parade drills, firearms training and customs operations courses, before they could be commissioned as officers. Maiwada did not address a widely circulated but unverified list which suggested the recruitment was skewed in favour of candidates from a particular region.
Federal Character Commission Calls for Suspension
The Federal Character Commission (FCC) has separately called for the exercise to be suspended, with Abdulwasiu Bawa-Allah, chairman of the FCC Financial Services Committee, stating that the commission was not invited to monitor the process.
Comptroller-General of Customs Adewale Adeniyi had, in August, defended the exercise, stating that successful candidates were distributed equally across all 36 states. In July, the NCS announced 3,852 successful applicants drawn from a pool of 573,680, spread across three entry cadres: superintendent, inspectorate and customs assistant. Physical screening was held in September at the Nigeria Customs Command and Staff College in Gwagwalada, Abuja.
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Nigerian Customs Service published the final list of successful candidates from its 2024/2025 recruitment exercise, confirming that just 3,852 applicants secured places out of 573,680 who applied, a success rate of roughly 0.67 per cent, or one slot for every 148 applicants. Comptroller General Adewale Adeniyi made the announcement at a press briefing, breaking down the selections across three cadres: 1,275 in the Superintendent Cadre, 367 in the Inspectorate Cadre, and 2,210 in the Customs Assistant Cadre.
