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The Ogun State Government said applicants applying for the post of messenger, mortuary attendant, cook, health attendant and others at Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, must pay the sum of N2,500 to complete the online application. The government also said those applying for higher posts would pay the sum of N5,000 to complete same.
        According to reports, The job opportunity was posted Sunday on the official Ogun job portal launched in August by Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo – https://jobs.ogunstate.gov.ng/job/. After applying, applicants are asked to follow a link to fill a form. This form attracts payment of Two Thousand, Five Hundred Naira (N2,500.00) only.” the job description said.

The job description reads in full:

“The Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu is taking applications from suitable, qualified candidates for the Post MESSENGER, CONHESS 01

“Requirement:
By direct appointment of a candidate possessing the First School Leaving Certificate.

“Apply for the job on the portal by clicking the apply button

“After applying, follow this link https://www.formpl.us/form/706476322 and fill the form. This form attracts payment of Two Thousand, Five Hundred Naira (N2,500.00) only.

“Make payment, submit and save generated receipt of submission. Your application is not complete if you do not make payment.

“Successful candidates would be contacted.”

For the senior cadre, the job description says: “After applying, follow this link https://www.formpl.us/form/706476322 and fill the form. This form attracts payment of Five Thousand Naira (N5,000.00) only.

“Make the payment, submit and save generated receipt of submission. Your application is not complete if you do not make payment.”

DAILY POST reports that the link where the form is to be completed also demands N500 as processing fee.

But the demand for N2,500 and N5,000 for junior and senior cadres respectively has been generating reactions from youths across Ogun State.

Many have taken to the social media to condemn the development, saying “government is being insensitive to the plight of the many jobless youths in the state.”

It was argued in some quarters that qualified unemployed youths who may not have money to obtain the application form would be automatically disqualified.

“How will government charge jobless youths seeking jobs. It is even ridiculous that government is charging for posts of mortuary attendant, messenger, cook and so on. It is uncalled for. Where do you expect them to get that money from?” a civil servant told DAILY POST anonymously.

A graduate of Mass Communication, Quadri Olatunji described the development as “daylight robbery”, asking the government to halt the payment immediately.

“This is daylight robbery! Where have we found ourselves in this state for God’s sake? This act is criminal to say the least and if the state government has any iota of integrity left, the payment should be halted immediately and money collected should be returned. May God save us in Ogun State,” Olatunji stated.

Speaking, the National Public Relations Officer of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Azeez Adeyemi on his part, did a comparison between the incumbent Gov Dapo Abiodun and his predecessor, Sen. Ibikunle Amosun.

Adeyemi said, “We must remember that yesterday in this same state, the last administration collected N12,500 from job seekers, extorting them of the little they have and in turn inflicting them with more poverty and at the end, he didn’t still employ them.

“The N2,500 and N5,000 mentioned aren’t the doings of the government from our engagement with the government, but for that same administrative purpose that the last administration extorted thousands of the poor graduates to the tune of N12,500.”

A resident of Abeokuta, Sulaimon Babatunde, berated the Ogun State Government for demanding money from unemployed youths; saying, ‘This is a bad idea. How can the government collect money from unemployed citizens before securing a job.? I can’t understand this government any more.”

Reacting, the Chief Press Secretary to Gov Abiodun, Kunle Somorin, said, “The job portal doesn’t charge anybody one dime. It’s free. You may ask OOUTH if anyone was charged and why. I know people who applied for SUBEB, Anchor Borrower Scheme, etc, including my relations. They were not charged.”

Our correspondent put a call through to OOUTH on a phone number that was gotten from its website -http://www.oouth.com/oouth/portal/contacts.html.

The officer who picked the call confirmed there was a recruitment exercise going on; telling our correspondent to visit the Ogun job portal to apply.

Asked if applicants are to pay for the recruitment exercise, he quipped, “once you get to Ogun job portal, you will see all the instructions there. Follow all the instructions.”

The Ogun State Chairman of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, Abduljabar Ayelaagbe, said he had begun a covert investigation into the matter.

A consultant to Gov Abiodun on media, Yinka Ogundimu last night appealed to our correspondent to give her tilL today to give a response.

Ogundimu is yet to revert back more than 12 hours after she was contacted.

The Ogun State Chairman of the Labour Party, Abayomi Arabambi told DAILY POST that, “The management of OOUTH said that was their usual practice because the immediate administration of GOV AMOSUN directed them to generate IGR on their own, thus their usual practices but the present Government has stopped it.”

Arabambi’s comment is contrary to the instruction on the OOUTH site where the form is to be completed – https://www.formpl.us/form/706476322.

The information reads: “This form, attracts payment of Five Thousand Naira (N5,000.00) only for posts 1-20 while posts 21-38 attracts a payment of Two Thousand, Five Hundred Naira (N2,500.00) only. All applications carry an additional online processing fee of N500.” It was reported in September that applicants seeking employment into the same hospital were asked to pay a sum of N5,000 each for the application form, while those applying as Registrars were also mandated to pay additional N2,500 to obtain the residency handbook, making a total of N7,500.

Recently, it was reported that 29,000 applicants were battling for 1,500 teaching jobs in Ogun.