The Police Service Commission (PSC) is finalising preparations for the recruitment of cadets and constables into the Nigeria Police Force for 2025.
As part of efforts to ensure a transparent and credible process, PSC Chairman, retired Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Hashimu Argungu, on Wednesday led a high-level management delegation to the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) in Abuja to seek partnership and support.
During the visit, DIG Argungu emphasised the importance of data in modern recruitment processes, stating that protected and reliable data was essential for effective background checks on applicants.
“Data rules the world. With accurate and protected data, we can plan properly and ensure credible Nigerians are recruited into the Police Force,” he said. “We are here to fortify the Commission’s recruitment exercise. We need to know who we are recruiting.”
Argungu revealed that the PSC would soon commence recruitment of cadets and the 30,000 constables annually approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. However, he expressed concern over the Commission’s lack of access to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) database, which he said hampers the Commission’s constitutional responsibility to recruit credible individuals into the police.
He appealed to the NDPC’s National Commissioner, Dr Vincent Olatunji, to intervene and help facilitate access to identity data of prospective recruits.
In response, Dr Olatunji pledged his office’s support for a credible and data-compliant recruitment process. He assured the PSC of his commitment to help resolve the database access issue and announced plans to train PSC staff on data protection standards.
Both agencies agreed to establish a joint committee that will begin work immediately to align the recruitment process with international best practices for data protection.
