We Haven’t Received Directive To Refund Applicants’ Money – NIS, Ministry Of Interior

There are indications that the Federal
Government may not refund the N1,
000 application fee that was paid by
each of the over 500, 000 job-seekers
that applied for various vacancies
advertised by the Nigerian Immigration
Service.
However, following the ill-fated
recruitment exercise on Saturday,
March 15, which resulted in the death
of at least 19 applicants, the FG after
its weekly Federal Executive Council
meeting on Wednesday, announced the
cancelation of the exercise and
subsequent refund of the application
fees.
But the Public Relations Officer of the
NIS, Mr. Emeka Obua, on Saturday said
that the top echelon of the service had
not received any directive on the
refund of the money.
He said such a directive would come
from the Federal Government to
Minister of the Interior, Mr. Abba Moro.
Also, the Ministry said no directive had
been given to it from any quarters to
refund the money to applicants.
The Special Assistant to the Minister on
Media, Mr. George Ubong, in a
telephone interview with one of SUNDAY
PUNCH ’s correspondents, said no such
directive had been received in the
ministry.
“We have not received any directive to
refund any money”, he stated.
Ubong also denied the allegation that
the contracting firm, Drexel Nigeria
Ltd., which handled the exercise, was
single-handedly picked by the minister,
saying the firm had been registered
with the Ministry of Interior as a
contractor long before the appointment
of Moro.
“The man has been a contractor with
the ministry of interior before the
advent of the minister. The minister
doesn’t know him”, he said.