Staff Recruitment and Selection Process in the Nigerian Public Service: What is to be done?

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Staff Recruitment and Selection Process in the Nigerian Public Service: What
is to be done?
Article in International Journal of Human Resource Studies · September 2014
DOI: 10.5296/ijhrs.v4i3.6367
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International Journal of Human Resource StudiesISSN 2162-30582014, Vol. 4, No. 3www.macrothink.org/ijhrs280Staff Recruitment and Selection Process in the NigerianPublic Service: What is to be done? Bernard Oladosu Omisore, Ph.DandBernadette Ivhaorheme Okofu (Mrs.) Members of Teaching Faculty of the Centre for Management DevelopmentShangisha, Lagos, Nigeria Doi:10.5296/ijhrs.v4i3.6367 URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.5296/ijhrs.v4i3.6367 AbstractThe recruitment and selection of staff in any organization be it public or private sector is ofparamount importance to the organization. This is so because it is the staff that turns thevision and mission of the organization into reality. Thus, the objectives of any organizationcan only be realized through the effective co-ordination of the human resource (staff) of theorganization. This paper attempts an examination of the process of staff recruitment andselection in the public service of Nigeria.Five relevant research questions were raised and addressed. Descriptive statistics was usedto analyse the data collected from respondents to the questionnaire designed for this purpose.The results obtained showed that merit is often jettisoned on the altar of ethnicity and religionin recruitment into the public service in Nigeria. Since the public service is directlycontrolled and regulated by the government, the Nigerian Federal Character Principlewas largely complied with. The study also reveals that though there are stipulated periods forrecruitment and selection into the public service, these are often sidelined. This paperconcludes by recommending that for government to operate the most efficient administrativeservice that would be beneficial to all, her recruitment and selection policies into the Nigerianpublic services should be unfettered. It should be able to absorb the most qualified,technically sound, disciplined and committed human resource that would in turn helpgovernment achieve the objectives of governance. Keywords: Staff, recruitment, selection, process, nigerian, public service. 1. IntroductionWhile it is true that machines have been developed to do the work human beings used to do,it is also true that the machines cannot operate themselves. They have to be operated byhuman beings in order to achieve desired results. Thus, every organization (public or private)depends on the effective use of its available resources in order to achieve its objectives.These resources (human and material) should be in the right quantity, quality and time, ifthey are to be effectively utilized. However, one of the resources of the organization which

International Journal of Human Resource StudiesISSN 2162-30582014, Vol. 4, No. 3www.macrothink.org/ijhrs281is considered as the most vital, most valuable, most complicated and the least predictable isthe human resource. This is because it is the human resource that processes the otherresources of the organization so that the goals and objectives of the organization areacheived.All over the world, the services provided by governments are done through public servants.Public servants are those that work in the public service of any country or state. In Nigeria,public servants are made up mainly of senior and junior staff, as well as executive, technicaland administrative cadres who are largely distinguished based on their educationalqualifications, training, skills, ranks and the duties they discharge (Yaro, 2014). The termPublic Service covers agencies of government (federal or state) civil service, the legislatureand judiciary as well as their agencies and parastatals. It encompasses the civil service inthe strict sense of the ministries and departments of central or state government and the fieldadministration. It also includes local governments, the military, the police and other securityor paramilitary agencies. The Public Service is a dynamic structure of government whichoperates based on rules that are reviewed every five years in Nigeria so as to keep in tunewith changing times to serve the current needs of society and to provide for the futurerequirements of the people (Yaro, 2014).The indigenization of the public service that accompanied independence in the 1960s, whichwas coated with the perpetuated problems of sectionalism, nepotism, tribalism and religion,could be traced from the rationalization and popular purges which gave birth to competitionsamong ethnic groups in the country who want to favour their ethnic cleavages. Ever sincethen, these issues became and remain critical and never left the Nigerian Public Service.This research effort is, therefore, an attempt at focusing on the process of staff recruitmentand selection into the public service in Nigeria. This paper will also attempt to proffer somesuggestions to improve the process. 1.1 Objectives of the StudyThis paper seeks to examine the process of staff recruitment and selection into the NigerianPublic Service. It also seeks to find out the roles of ethnicity, religion, etc., in recruitmentand selection into the Public Service. This becomes necessary in the light of recentattempt by the Nigerian Immigration Service (N.I.S) to select new employees, which left gorytales in the minds of many families in Nigeria. It would be recalled that on the 15th ofMarch 2014, N.I.S attempted selecting some new recruits but due to some logistic reasons,some candidates who went for the selection interview lost their lives. This paper is also anattempt to establish whether or not the Federal Character Principle is being adhered to. Italso aims at finding out whether equity and fairness are the benchmark of recruitment andselection into the Public Service in Nigeria. Effort would also be geared towards proferringsolutions to observed shortcomings.1.2 Study QuestionsThis study intends to create awareness of workplace equality and diversity policies wherethey are not practiced. In view of this, the following study questions were raised to beaddressed by this paper:

International Journal of Human Resource StudiesISSN 2162-30582014, Vol. 4, No. 3www.macrothink.org/ijhrs282(i) How frequent are recruitment exercises conducted in the Public Service inNigeria?(ii) Is merit system adopted in the recruitment and selection into the Public Servicein Nigeria?(iii) Do ethnicity and religion play any role in the recruitment and selection into thePublic Service in Nigeria?(iv) Are the recruitment and selection practices into the Public Service guided by theFederal Character Principle?(v) Is training, professionalism, etc., used as guiding principles in recruitment andselection into the Public Service in Nigeria? 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW2.1 The Concept of RecruitmentButler, et al (1991) defines recruitment as “encompassing the array of organizationalpractices and decisions used to affect the number or types of individuals who are willing toapply for, or to accept, employment in a given vacancy”. Thus defined, recruitmentcombines with selection and placement procedures to bring people into positions, specifiedby some type of job analysis, that were previously unfilled. If, through recruitment, a largenumber of candidates can be identified for a particular position, selection procedures may beused to determine which are most likely to pass the test provided by future performanceevaluations; it is thus possible to skin the cream off the top of the applicant pool. But ifrecruiting yields only just enough people to fill vacancies, there will be a long way from thecream level. Successful recruiting thus is the sin qua non for successful selection andstaffing. Without it, organizations will not have the human resources to implement theirstrategies effectively (Miner, et al, 1995).Griffin, (1997) defines recruitment to mean, “securing the right people for particular jobs, andit may take the form of advertising for large groups of employees or tracking out a lightlyskilled individual for specific work”. This means that not any person with paperqualification is eligible for recruitment. A choice has to be made on who is the rightcandidate for a particular post. This is very important due to the fact that it is through thisprocess that the government or organization can achieve its sets of goals and objectives.According to Monday and Noe (2005) “recruitment is a process of attracting individuals on atimely basis, in sufficient numbers and with appropriate qualifications, developing theirinterest in an organization and encouraging them to apply for jobs within it”. This showsclearly that recruitment exercises are not conducted all year round but at a designated timewhen the need arises. The need arises as a result of vacant positions created by those wholeft the service as a result of their retirement, withdrawal from the service or other reasons.During this process, efforts are made to inform the applicants fully about the selection criteriaof the required competencies that will lead to effective performance, as well as careeropportunities the organization can provide the employee. Clear knowledge of the job helpsthe potential employees to put in their best when employed because it is only when you knowwhat you are going to do that you can understand not only how to do it but how to do it best(Yaro, 2014).