Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has vowed to hand over suspended officials of the Nasarawa State Teachers’ Service Commission, NSTSC, and other top government officials involved in an alleged employment scam to security agencies.
The Governor stated this after receiving the report of a committee set up to investigate irregularities in the recent recruitment of teachers by the NSTSC at the Government House on Thursday, 6 February, 2025
Sule expressed concern over the extent of corruption uncovered, stating that officials who extorted money from job seekers in exchange for appointment letters must face legal consequences.
“The aspect of them collecting money from people, I don’t even have the power to handle that.
“The security agencies should be involved to see how these innocent children should get back their money,” Sule stated.
The investigation revealed that the NSTSC had recruited 3,277 teachers—far exceeding the 1,000 approved by the government.
He lamented that this over recruitment, coupled with a lack of merit-based selection, could compromise the state’s educational standards.
“How do we accommodate 3,277 teachers today in Nasarawa State? Where are you going to get the money to pay them? Where are you posting them? That is not even the biggest worry.
“The biggest worry is that the entire exercise was not done on merit, which means we have engaged people who are not qualified to be posted as teachers,” he said.
Sule warned that his administration’s efforts to improve education in the state could be undermined by such unethical practices.
He appealed for public understanding as the government reviews the cases of the 2,277 teachers recruited without approval.
The governor also hinted at the possibility of conducting a fresh selection process for all 3,277 recruits to ensure only the most qualified 1,000 candidates are employed.
While presenting the report, the chairman of the investigative committee, Silas Dachor, stated that the NSTSC had willfully ignored the governor’s directive and engaged in recruitment beyond approved limits.
“The committee found out that the recruitment did not in any way reflect the needs of the school system. Contrary to the rationale of the exercise, which was to fill existing vacancies,” Dachor revealed.
He further described the recruitment exercise as a “racketeering venture” where desperate job seekers were forced to pay for employment, reducing the process to a cash-for-jobs scheme.
Dachor urged the state government to act on the committee’s recommendations to restore integrity to the education sector.
