The National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO) has been commended by the Federal Character Commission (FCC) for its adherence to the federal character principle of ensuring fair and equitable distribution of posts and recruitment in the Institute.
The commendation was made by the Chairman Committee on Social Development, Culture and Tourism, Alhaji Ibrahim Isa Ladan, at an interactive meeting with the Executive Secretary, Dr. Barclays Foubiri Ayakoroma, and other top management staff of the Institute, at the Commission’s Head Office in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.
He note that the Commission was established to ensure that government’s desire to provide gainful employment to deserving persons is on track, and that it is the place to guide MDAs, in order to comply with the set directives.
The Chairman of the Committee stated that the observance of the federal character principles is imperative in the task of building a virile and united nation, and that the commission does not encourage mediocrity but is empowered constitutionally to ensure even distribution of employment to qualified candidates from every segment of the federation.
Stressing on the need for constant interaction between the Commission and organization, Alhaji Ladan said it enables Commissioner to discuss peculiar issues or short-coming of the organizations and proffer solutions as regards recruitment of staff, explaining that the Commission prosecutes organisations that flout the recruitment guidelines as a last resort, but this is after such organizations had been given opportunities to interact and make amend where necessary.
According to him, it is only when organisations fail to comply that the Commission will have no
choice but to apply the instrument of prosecution, and advised the Chief Executives present not to allow anybody intimidate them into employing candidates without following due process.
Collaborating the Chairman’s commendation, the Commissioner representing Taraba State, Alhaji Shehu, noted that while some agencies have zero representation for some states, the 36 states and the FCT, were represented on NICO’s Staff Nominal Roll, which shows that the Institute was on course, adding that once the Institute gets approval for employment, states that were under-represented should be given priority
Responding, the Executive Secretary, Dr. Barclays Foubiri Ayakoroma, thanked the Committee for the interactive meeting and apologized for not honouring the initial invitations, which he said, was not intentional but as a result of other official engagements.
He affirmed the Institute’s commitment to adhering to the federal character principles, adding that in any subsequent recruitment exercise, candidates will go through rigorous and competitive interviews, as that will make selected candidates value their job the more, and promised that the Institute will always relate with the Commission in recruitment issues.
After the interactive meeting, the members of the Committee led representatives of the organizations present to pay a courtesy visit to the Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Oba Abdulraheem, to brief him on the outcome of the meeting.
The Commission Chairman, while commending the report, stated that the Commission is interested in the activities of NICO and called on the Institute to always carry the Commission along, and wished the ES a very successful tenure in office.
The other organization present at the interactive meeting was the National Institute for Sports, led by its Director, Dr. Isaac Ikhoria, who attended with some principal officers of the Institute.
(c) Nico news