The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been accused by the Arewa Youth Assembly (AYA) of covertly hiring more than 400 new personnel to replace the 1,000 that were allegedly forced to retire.

Mohammed Salihu Danlami, the group’s speaker, made the accusations in a statement released in Kaduna. He denounced the hiring procedure as being opaque and in violation of due process.
Danlami claimed that the hiring process, which was allegedly planned under the direction of CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso, was conducted without adequate advertising to enable eligible applicants to submit their applications. He questioned the reasoning behind hiring additional employees so soon following a downsizing exercise, calling the action a “policy somersault.”

“We have intercepted reliable reports claiming that the Central Bank of Nigeria, led by Olayemi Cardoso, has covertly hired more than 400 employees to replace the more than 1,000 who allegedly resigned voluntarily,” Danlami stated.
“How is it possible for a bank that recently reduced its workforce to covertly hire 400 people to perform what task?”

The youth leader also voiced worries that the recruitment procedure might have violated the Nigerian constitution’s federal character principle by excluding applicants from the Federal Capital Territory and the 19 northern states.

Danlami asked the CBN to clarify the claims and make sure that all future hiring procedures are open and inclusive.

At the time this article was filed, the apex bank had not responded to the accusation.