Six senior civil servants have been reportedly kidnapped in Kabba, Kogi State by suspected terrorists on Sunday while traveling by road to Abuja for the 2025 Directorate Promotion Exam which is a Computer Based Test.

The suspected terrorists were said to have ambushed two vehicles including the one conveying the civil servants at an abandoned road construction site and made away with an undisclosed number of passengers while ransom is already being demanded.

Three of the kidnapped civil servants are staff of the Ministry of Defence who were traveling with other colleagues from Lagos to Abuja for the Computer Based Test.

The Ministry of Defence Chapter of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria in a notice of the incident circulated to members described the incident as sad and very disturbing, lamenting the policy change to hold the promotion test in Abuja and not zonal centres as earlier envisaged.

The association expressed regrets that some of its staff are at the receiving end of the decision of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation to hold the directorate promotion exams in Abuja despite the fact that the Computer Based Test (CBT) can easily be done anywhere in the country as earlier touted before the sudden change.

Before now, some participants in the exercise expressed displeasure with the authorities for reversing the decentralization of the promotion exams.

They queried the rationale behind asking candidates to travel from all parts of the country to Abuja to write a computer based test that can be decentralized.

One civil servant who craved anonymity lamented:

“Imagine traveling on our bad roads 12-14 hours from Lagos to Abuja one way to write a test of one hour. Returning is the same duration and experience. Those who may choose to fly are spending an average of Four Hundred Thousand Naira to and fro and you have not even included accommodation and sundry expenses.

“The whole scenario is painful and unbearable. There are those who have been coming to Abuja since 2018 to write exams four to five times for the same grade level. Every year you hear there is no vacancy for promotion. Yet the process is not decentralized.

“For those who have been kidnapped unfortunately, can you imagine the trauma their families will go through? Something needs to be done to eliminate the trauma,” the senior civil servant emphasized.

It was learnt that some civil servants in previous years have lost their lives in road accidents while on their way to Abuja for the centralized promotion exams.

The latest kidnap incident has intensified advocacy for decentralization of the promotion exams to mitigate the ordeal faced by participants in the exercise.

Commission solicits understanding, considers decentralization

Prior to the unfortunate kidnap incident involving senior civil servants, the

Federal Civil Service Commission had in a press release solicited understanding from the candidates. It also expressed hope that the examinations will over time be decentralized.

A statement signed by Taiwo Hassan said, “As the Commission leverages on JAMB facilities for the conduct of the 2025 Directorate Levels CBT examination, we are not only concerned about the credibility and transparency of the process, but also the convenience of the candidates, hence, the commencement of the first run exercise at JAMB Centres in the FCT.

“Following feedback from the public, the Commission wishes to assure all candidates that it will consider the possibility of decentralizing the examination centres across the 36 States and FCT, using other technology-enabled innovations to make the process seamless for future examinations.”

Hassan’s statement on behalf of the Commission’s Chairman reads in full:

“Federal Civil Service Commission solicits Candidates’ understanding on the 2025 Directorate CBT Promotion Examinations

The Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC) informs the candidates sitting for the 2025 Directorates Level Promotion Examination that the Commission is aware of the inconveniences they may go through while preparing for the CBT promotion examinations.

The recent social media publication on this matter is duly noted by the Commission. However, as with most innovations, there may be some gaps. Transition from manual examinations to CBT comes with its attendant hurdles both for FCSC and the candidates.

As the Commission leverages on JAMB facilities for the conduct of the 2025 Directorate Levels CBT examination, we are not only concerned about the credibility and transparency of the process, but also the convenience of the candidates, hence, the commencement of the first run exercise at JAMB Centres in the FCT.

Following feedback from the public, the Commission wishes to assure all candidates that it will consider the possibility of decentralizing the examination centres across the 36 States and FCT, using other technology-enabled innovations to make the process seamless for future examinations.

In the meantime, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation is exploring the possibility of getting MDAs to process Duty Tour Allowance (DTA) for eligible officers travelling outside their duty stations to sit for the examinations, in line with PSR 140107 and extant Financial Regulations, within the limits of available resources.” (Newsdiaryonline)