Some job seekers in Ondo State, who claimed to have been recruited as teachers, on Friday staged a protest in Akure over their exclusion from the government’s ongoing capturing exercise.
The protesters stormed the governor’s office in the Alagbaka area of the state capital, accusing officials of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and the Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM) of issuing them appointment letters later dismissed by government as fake.
One of the protesters, who spoke anonymously, said they were shocked when their letters were described as “backdoor appointments.”
“We are affected members of the newly recruited teachers in Ondo State and we are protesting our disengagement from the capturing exercise, which we were told was a backdoor appointment letter issued to us by directors at SUBEB and TESCOM,” the protester said.
Reacting, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, Mr Ebenezer Adeniyan, said the demonstrators were victims of a recruitment scam.
According to him, the applicants paid money to fraudsters during the process and were issued fake appointment letters.
“People should please note that those who protested are not teachers but applicants who were duped by some individuals during the recruitment process. They all paid money to scammers who issued them fake letters,” Adeniyan said.
He added that those legitimately recruited by the state government had already been absorbed into service and commenced work.
