FCT indigenes suffer recruitment discrimination - Ona Abaji

The indigenes of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are suffering discrimination in recruitment and political appointments.

On a visit to the Chairman of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), the Ona Abaji, Alhaji Adamu Baba Yunusa, said the discrimination cut across the federal civil service, the armed forces and in the education sector.

The Ona Abaji, who is also the Chairman of the FCT Council of Chiefs, expressed dismay that FCT indigenes were neither employed as permanent secretaries nor appointed as ministers.

“The public is often made to erroneously believe that such slots do not exist for the territory,” the Ona said.

He blamed the development on Section 6, Part 1 of the FCC Act that provides that each state shall produce 2.75 per cent of the total workforce in any federal establishment while the FCT shall produce 1 per cent.

He said the provision, apart from being discriminatory, also flouted a court judgement that said the FCT should be treated on a par with other states.

He said people who eventually gained admission into universities or get recruited into federal establishments were not real indigenes of the territory.

“About 70 per cent of FCT candidates who find themselves on annual admission lists of the Nigerian Defence Academy, the Nigerian Military School and the Air Force Military School hardly meet the act’s indigene status requirements,” he said.

The Acting Chairman of the FCC, Shettima Bukar Abba, said the FCT indigenes’ case has always been a concern to him and promised the Ona that the case would be considered with the seriousness it deserved.

Abba said the commission has tabled the case before the FCC state commissioners for deliberation and they would take a stand soon that would address it.