While it is no more news that, Darlington Bassey Eyo, former Chairman of the Cross River State Local Government Service Commission, resigned his appointment after overwhelming evidence suspectedly showed he oversaw a staff recruitment process that sold employment opportunities to the highest bidder, negating all principles of fair recruitment into the local government system, competent sources in government maintain that Eyo didn’t operate in complete isolation.
“Those who applied, had to submit 10 files each of their photocopied documents. Find out which persons and offices those photocopied documents went to and the inputs they made in the ill-fated recruitment process. In most of those offices, people demanded for a quota of vacancies before they can process the files. When they got those vacancies, they sold them to the highest bidder and forwarded such names to the Commission – the man had no knowledge that those vacancies were sold”, we were told by a source who has elected to remain anonymous for safety concerns.
“Even in instances where (illegal) money transfers were made to highly placed civil servants and political appointees, who saw this exercise as one to cash out on, those money transfers did not go to him, they went to those people and he was simply put under pressure to accept their inputs believing he was accommodating his colleagues. I am and can never make excuses for him, but the man was tied to the stake by the same people he thought he could satisfy, for political gains”, our source continued.
“Let our State governor be fast in constituting what ever panel he hopes to constitute, to look into this matter. Yes, there is a possibility that if he stays too long before acting, evidence(s) may be lost. Look at the Accountant-General’s office for instance, that is where the payroll appears to have been manipulated and some unscrupulous persons there made sure some of those newly recruited into the local government system, got paid salaries almost immediately. Can we fish out these set of persons and mete out punishment?”
On whether the fresh recruitment exercise being put together by government will bring forth a different outcome, another well placed source expressed doubts. “Several characters in this unfortunate mix of officials, are still firmly in place and will perfect better plans to undo the credibility of the process, especially that most of them are under pressure to refund monies already collected. They will wrestle, even with negative tactics to get their ‘clients’ into the list, it doesn’t concern them if they are qualified or not; they just don’t want to pay back monies they have already eaten.”
The date for the rescheduled exercise is yet to be communicated to the public, even as those who thought they have finally gained employment realise that their new jobs have become a farce.
