Several candidates who claim to have been recruited into the Federal Fire Service (FFS) have alleged that the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB) substituted their names with others after offering them probational appointments.
The candidates, who applied through the CDCFIB portal between November and December 2024, said they were denied access during the documentation exercise held in April 2025 despite receiving letters of invitation.
However, the Controller-General of the FFS, Abdulganiyu Jaji, dismissed the allegations, urging anyone who feels unjustly treated to present their appointment letters for verification.
Some candidates said officers at the documentation venue informed them that their Trade Skill Numbers (TSN) had already been allocated to other individuals, rendering their letters invalid.
A letter of invitation sighted by our correspondent, signed by the Secretary of the Board, Maj. Gen. Abdulmalik Jibrin (retd.), indicated that the candidates were scheduled for documentation on March 24, 2025. However, the dates were later rescheduled twice, first to April 7 and then to April 17, 2025, according to official SMS and email communications from the CDCFIB.
One affected candidate, who asked not to be named, said she was denied entry at the documentation venue despite presenting her invitation letter. She later discovered that her TSN had been reassigned to another individual who had completed training.
Another candidate reported a similar experience, claiming an officer told him his letter was invalid because it was allegedly signed by an unauthorized person — despite the signature being that of the Board Secretary.
Responding to the allegations, CG Jaji attributed the situation to rising incidents of job racketeering. He stated that the FFS had discovered fake appointment letters and decided to quietly suspend the documentation process to expose the fraudulent activities.
“To our surprise, the fraudsters—completely unaware of our move—went ahead and printed even more fake letters. We could only watch and laugh, knowing they had exposed themselves,” Jaji said.
He warned that anyone presenting forged documents would face immediate arrest and prosecution and stressed that the FFS only conducts recruitment transparently through official government channels.
The CG challenged any candidate in possession of a genuine appointment letter who was denied documentation to come forward for verification.
