Chairman of the Edo State Civil Service Commission, Princess (Mrs.) Ekiuwa Inneh, has assured that the ongoing recruitment into the state’s civil service is being conducted in an open and transparent manner, to ensure that the best candidates are employed.

Princess Inneh, who said this in an interview with journalists, noted that the commission allowed for a neutral body to conduct the examination to ensure that there is no interference and undue pressure on the commission.

According to her, “We are in the process of recruiting now. We decided at the Commission to allow a neutral body conduct the examination. We listed the positions that are available and asked people to apply online. The test began from the moment you applied.”

Noting that the commission will recruit the best for the jobs being advertised, she said, “If you applied wrongly, of course, you have failed. There is nothing anybody can do about that. By the nature of such failed application, you are weeded out. If the application is successful, then fine. After that, then you need to ask if you applied for a position you are qualified for. If you did not, that’s up to you.”

She stressed that she has rebuffed pleas for interference in the recruitment process, noting, “We asked a neutral body to conduct that part of the recruitment for us. This is so that we can be free from pressure. People have been coming to me and I tell them there is nothing I can do. I don’t even have the database. I don’t have information about who has applied and who did not apply.

“Let everybody go and write the exam. I have been analysing the report of the exercise after the exams were conducted. The way to manage pressure is to allow a neutral body to conduct the test. It is a government body, anyway, not a consultant. Once you finish the test, the computer tells you to stop when the time is up.

She said that after the exams, if the commission is satisfied with the results, it can either call for another test to trim down the numbers or move to the interview stage, adding, “but at the moment, we are studying the results. If we are satisfied, we will call for interview. We will see everybody, check their credentials and be certain that we are recruiting the best into the civil service. That is what we do even for promotions.”