The Federal Character Commission, FCC, has dragged the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, and its Comptroller-General, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, before the Federal High Court in Abuja over alleged breaches of the Federal Character Commission Act during the Service’s 2025/2026 recruitment exercise.
The legal action comes after the FCC sought access to recruitment documents and oversight of the exercise to ensure adherence to the Federal Character principle.
According to the charge, the NCS allegedly failed to release requested recruitment records, including nominal rolls, despite receiving a formal letter from the commission on March 25, 2026.
The NCS was also accused of failing to present key stages of the recruitment process to the FCC for monitoring.
Additionally, the commission alleges that the NCS failed to comply with its October 23, 2026 directive to suspend specified recruitment and training activities pending a review.
The charge further alleges that the NCS failed to provide clear recruitment criteria and comprehensive eligibility guidelines, preventing the commission from determining the state and geopolitical distribution of available vacancies.
The commission emphasised that monitoring recruitment, accessing relevant records, and ensuring equitable representation are statutory responsibilities, not optional requirements that public institutions may disregard.
