The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Civil Service Commission has organised computer based promotion examination for 915 workers, mostly in the directorate cadre.

The candidates, drawn from the Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB), Secondary Education Board (SEB), the Education Secretariat, and other agencies, will be required to prove their readiness for elevation through the technology-driven test.

The Commission’s Chairman, Mr Emeka Eze, said the initiative was introduced to ensure that only those prepared for modern, technology-based administrative challenges attain substantive director positions.

He added that the Computer based examination was designed to eliminate undue influence and speed up results, with scores expected to be released within a week.

“And as part of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the present administration, we needed to introduce technology to avoid, first of all, the possibility of interference and pressure. And so, we will be the first commission to introduce CBT tests in Nigeria.

“Because the idea is that as we are finishing the result today, by next week the result is out. So there’s no possibility of anybody putting pressure on anybody for it. So this is part of the renewed hope agenda of the present administration”.

He noted that the Commission, created by the FCT Minister, Dr Nyesom Wike with the approval of President Bola Tinubu, was also working to clear a backlog of promotions dating back to 2019.

Mr Eze also revealed that the ongoing verification of the FCT workforce uncovered several cases of age falsification, leading to the retirement of affected staff.

Representative of the South-East in the Commission, Mr Martins Azubuike, warned that those who fail the examination would remain in their current positions.

He stressed that the CBT system has come to stay, as it will encourage civil servants to upgrade their digital skills and reward only those who can both operate the computer and answer questions correctly.

“If you can’t operate it, it means you can’t answer your questions. And at the end of the day, the computer will grade you. If it is zero, the computer will grade you.”

Remi Johnson, Edited By Grace Namiji