FCC has filed four-count criminal charge against Customs and Adeniyi over recruitment.
NewsOnline Nigeria reports that the Federal Character Commission (FCC) has filed a four-count criminal charge against the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and its Comptroller-General, Bashir Adeniyi, over alleged breaches of federal character requirements in the Service’s recruitment exercise.
The charge, dated November 12, 2026, was filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja and registered as FHC/ABJ/CR/772/2026. It accuses the defendants of failing to provide recruitment records, frustrating the commission’s monitoring work and disregarding a directive to suspend recruitment and training.
The allegations have not been tested in court. At the time of writing, Customs had not publicly responded to the charge.
The four counts
The charge sheet, which The PUNCH said it obtained, lists these allegations:
- Nominal rolls: The Service failed to submit the nominal rolls for its 2025 recruitment despite a request dated March 25, 2026. Adeniyi is accused of recklessly, negligently or willfully acquiescing in that failure.
- Monitoring: The defendants failed to invite or submit themselves to the commission to monitor relevant stages of the 2025/2026 recruitment between September 14 and October 7, 2026.
- Suspension directive: The Service allegedly continued recruitment and training after receiving an October 23, 2026 letter that directed it to suspend the exercise pending a review. The commission also alleges it failed to preserve relevant records or allow monitoring.
- Eligibility criteria: Despite repeated requests between January 30 and October 20, 2026, the Service allegedly failed to provide clear eligibility criteria and complete recruitment guidelines. The commission says this stopped it from determining how vacancies were distributed by state and geopolitical zone.
The counts are brought under Section 14(3) of the Federal Character Commission (Establishment, etc.) Act, Cap. F7, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, and are punishable under Section 15 of the Act.
Witnesses and evidence
The commission listed three witnesses: Abdulwasiu K. Bawa-Allah, chairman of its Committee on Financial Services, committee member Isa Jibrin Bida and the committee’s clerk, Usman Yaruwa. It also listed 14 documents it plans to tender, including correspondence with the Customs Service, a report on the Service and records of its October 22 press conference. Prosecutors said they may call more witnesses if the court requires it.
What the federal character principle requires
The federal character principle requires equitable representation across states and geopolitical zones. The FCC monitors compliance by federal agencies. Under the Act, the commission may also prosecute heads or staff of government bodies that fail to comply with federal character principles or formulae.
Background
The charge follows a dispute between the commission and the Service over the 2024/2025 recruitment, particularly complaints from applicants who said they were shortlisted but later left out of the training programme. On October 19, Adeniyi ordered a case-by-case reassessment, and Customs has said shortlisting did not guarantee enlistment.
