Speaking with Journalists during the exercise for candidates into the NIS on Monday in Abuja, the Secretary of the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board, Yakmut Alhassan Saleh, said the computer-based exam was taking place at the same time in 126 centres across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

He said: “All over the country, we have almost 190,000 candidates out of which 113,000 are Civil Defence, and for Immigration.

“We have 78,000 candidates across 126 centres in Nigeria.

“The examination is broken into three phases; we have the one for graduates and HND, NCE and OND and the third one for secondary school (leavers).”

The examination, according to him, was being conducted by JAMB to ensure transparency and avoid rancour and confusion that trailed a similar exercise a few years ago.

Yakmut said: “We need to go through a transparent method of a recruitment exercise and it has to start from the word go.

“This is just one component of the exercise, after this, we go into physical and medical as well as psychometric exercise.”

He said the Interior ministry was into partnership with JAMB to ensure that every candidate is given a fair opportunity to prove that he has the merit and requirement that we need.

On the number of vacancies that are expected to be filled by the applicants, the Board’s secretary said 9,460 jobs are up for grabs by successful candidates, adding that the results from the JAMB recruitment exam would be released immediately after the exercise.

“Immediately we get the results, we will shortlist for physical and medical checkups before 15 December (2020) IPP and capturing will commence, and they will now go for six months training for specialisation.”

“In both organisations, we are recruiting 9,460. 5,000 for civil defence and 4,460 for immigration,” Yakmut said.