The Police Service Commission (PSC) has continued the recruitment process of constables into the Nigerian Police Force (NPF).
The commission had suspended the process last month after the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, fumed over an advertorial on recruitment.
Baba, in a statement issued by the Force spokesman, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, had asked Nigerians to disregard the advertorial placed in national dailies.
The commission later suspended the process and said it wanted to resolve the issues with the IGP.
However, in a statement on Wednesday, the PSC said: “The Police Service Commission is the sole Statutory body exclusively empowered and responsible for the appointment, promotion, dismissal and exercise of disciplinary control over persons holding or aspiring to hold offices in The Nigeria Police Force except for the Inspector-General of Police.
“The Commission is one of the Federal Executive Bodies captured in Section 153 (1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended;
“Paragraph 29 and 30 of the third Schedule of the Constitution states that;
“The Commission shall have power to –
“(a) appoint persons to offices (other than the office of the Inspection-General of Police) in the Nigeria Police Force; and
“(b) dismiss and exercise disciplinary control over persons holding any office referred to in subparagraph (a) of this paragraph.
“Also Section 6 of the Police Service Commission (ESTABLISHMENT) ACT, 2001 provides as follows;
“(1) The Commission shall-
“(a) Be responsible for the appointment and promotion of persons to offices (other than the office of the Inspector-General of Police) in the Nigeria Police force:
“(b) Dismiss and exercise disciplinary control over persons (other than the Inspector-General of Police) in the Nigerian Police Force;
“(2) The Commission shall not be subject to the direction, control or supervision of any other authority or person in the performance of its functions other than as is prescribed in this Act.
“This is also captured in Section 14 of the Nigeria Police Act, 2020;
“The Commission has the power to appoint such other persons to offices in the Police Force as are required for the effective and efficient performance of functions of the Police Force on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the Commission.
“Section 2; PSR 020201 Provides thus;
“Recruitment” means filling vacancies by appointing persons not already in the Public Service of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It, however, excludes the transfer of officers from other Public Service in the Federal to the Federal Public Service,” the statement, titled, ‘PSC AND 2022 CONSTABLES RECRUITMENT.”
