The Chairman of the Cross River State Local Government Service Commission, Barrister Eyo Nsa Ekpo, disclosed this while speaking on a radio programme.
Ekpo said the victims were allegedly deceived, intimidated and pressured into paying between ₦100,000 and ₦1.5 million in exchange for local government employment.
According to him, some applicants seeking senior positions allegedly paid as much as ₦1.3 million and ₦1.5 million to secure appointments.
He said the discovery followed investigations by a panel set up by the state government after complaints and public outcry over the recruitment exercise.
“The panel found out that as many as 47 victims were cajoled, frightened and intimidated to part with over N51.8 million for fake local government jobs,” Ekpo said.
The commission chairman disclosed that some of the alleged perpetrators also issued fake employment letters to applicants, creating the impression that they had successfully secured government positions.
He further alleged that the recruitment process was manipulated in favour of family members, including some individuals who were not residents of Cross River State.
“Many of these victims came to open up and submitted evidence which the panel verified. We had guaranteed all whistleblowers security and confidentiality if they came up with evidence,” he said.
Ekpo said the state government was working to identify those allegedly involved in the fraud for questioning, prosecution and other appropriate sanctions.
The state government recently cancelled the 2024/2025 recruitment exercise following the panel’s findings and recommendations.
However, Ekpo said 821 people from the earlier exercise would be retained, while other qualified applicants would be allowed to participate in a fresh recruitment exercise expected to begin in two weeks.
He assured prospective applicants that the new recruitment exercise would follow due process and would not be commercialised.
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