THE RECRUITMENT TRAGEDY AND THE FESTERING SORE OF A COUNTRY AT CROSSROAD.
The country was treated again to another round of calamities last weekend.
Scores of our youths who went to participate in the national swindle orchestrated by the leadership of the Nigeria Immigration Service, in conjunction with the Ministry of Interior, were trampled upon and crushed to death in a stampede which occurred in several centres in the country.
The tragic import of this shame of a country, awash with petro-dollars, should not be lost on genuine patriots.
Nigerians are getting accustomed to disturbing news of gory details.
Hardly will a day pass without our sensibilities being assailed with stories bordering on the horrendous crimes perpetrated by criminal elements christened insurgents by the media.
The latest news on the gross abuse of the rights of the citizens of this country by officials of Nigeria Immigration Service nay the Ministry of Interior must be challenged vigorously.
Unemployed Nigerian youths trooped out in their thousands to participate in a so called Aptitude Test which looked more like religious carnivals or football fiestas.
The organisers of this national disgrace had sold almost one and a half millions of application forms for a supposed 4500 vacancies nationwide.
In this age when access to the internet has been liberalised, it is unthinkable that a government agency will ask applicants to attend a sham interview in an open stadium.
It is all the more reprehensible that these funny elements have extorted over 2 billion Naira from these hapless citizens whose only sin is their being Nigerians.
At the end of the organised scam, many of our youths died while several others sustained serious injuries.
Somebody must take responsibility for these calamities.
May we call on this government to sack the Comptroller of Nigeria Immigration Service and the Minister of Interior immediately? These officials cannot continue in office after these avoidable multiple tragedies.
In addition, we demand that a thorough investigation be carried out to unmask the characters behind this serial fraud.
This government owes the youths of this country an unreserved apology for this gross abuse.
Nigerians must resist any further attempts by unscrupulous elements who masquerade as recruitment agencies to exploit the misery of the people.
It should now be clear to apologists of this government that it has done almost nothing to create hope for our youths.
The sheer number of the mammoth crowd who practically seized all the venues of the organised crime is instructive.
Written By Oluwarotimi O Akeredolu, Esq, San