The Borno State Governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima has directed the state Civil Service Commission to commence procedures for the recruitment of 300 unemployed graduates of various fields from the 27 Local Government Areas of the state.

Governor Shettima revealed the directive while presenting certificates to 10 youths sponsored by the state government for one year course on electricity generation, distribution and transmission at the National Power Training Institute.

The Governor ordered the state Head of Service to employ the trainees for posting to Ministries dealing with the ongoing reconstruction of public infrastructures and private homes across the state.

He said the 10 youths should be employed out of the 300 slots he approved for graduates without jobs.

The 300 slots were created due to successful verification of workers at the state civil service, which led to the discovery of about 10,000 ghost workers who had been on the payroll of the state government for over 20 years with unknown persons siphoning over N500 million meant for salaries of workers.

‎The government now spends about N2.2 billion monthly for salaries and pensions as against previous salary bill of N2.7 million since 1999.

Shettima said with monthly savings of over N500 million, the state government could afford fresh recruitment of graduates under the first phase of employment that is likely to continue.

The Governor said workers would be eventually employed for other categories of civil servants.

He noted that the fresh employment aim was not just to engage idle graduates but also to reposition the civil service with productive youths that would play a crucial role in the ongoing rebuilding of the state as part of post insurgency response (Channels TV)

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