Job seekers have regarded an under-28 age embargo placed on the ongoing Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) recruitment as unfair.
On Friday, recruitment into vacant positions at the FIRS began officially and will close by November 14.
Eligible applicants, in addition to other requirements, “must be 27 years old or below by 31st December 2024“.
FIRS recruitment is now open. Apply through the link belowhttps://t.co/RQzcFmn5OTSee flyer for more details. Application closes on November 14, 2024. pic.twitter.com/5X9puyNNSD— Federal Inland Revenue Service NG (@FIRSNigeria) November 1, 2024
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The age bias in the FIRS’ recruitment notice has spurred people to react with disapproval, saying that the restriction fenced some intending applicants out.
Some argued that the FIRS’ failure to consider the unstable academic calendars that made many people overspend the duration of their courses in Nigerian schools has further entrenched discrimination against qualified job applicants.
@Simple__Adamsy had this to say, “The age limit is unfair. Considering the delays in schools, caused by FG and ASUU and other factors, then another one-year compulsory national service, you people should put some factors into consideration, please. At least below 35 years would have been better.”
@daniel_nwose wrote: “Applicants must be under 27 years old, having served before 2022. So for you to be considered as a B.Eng. holder, you should have gained admission by your 17th birthday and hope that any of the numerous ASUU strikes did not add any extra year.”
@emmaben1988 responded, “You want citizens to be patriotic by paying their tax with no age limit, but when (an) opportunity comes, you peg the age to Gen Z. No problem. Only people in that age bracket will also pay you people tax. No one will ever do the right thing as long as you’re not fair with us. This is not for us.”
According to the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, Nigeria has one of the world’s highest misery indexes, the sum of unemployment and inflation rates. In the first quarter of 2024, the country’s misery index rose to 36.9% from 30.5% recorded in the third quarter of 2023.
JOB AND ADMISSION AGE LIMIT
Arguments for and against age discrimination have persisted for decades in Nigeria.
Many citizens would persevere against incessant labour strikes to go through tertiary institutions only to be turned down by potential employers, not for qualification but age.
Usually, tertiary education spans two to six years depending on the choice of course. Due to strike actions by academic and non-academic staff unions, teaching and learning programmes are usually paralysed, directly altering the number of years students are expected to spend in school.
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The Federal Ministry of Education sparked another round of debate in July when it introduced a new admission policy, limiting higher institutions’ entry age requirement to 18 years. As the admission regulator, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) swiftly made an announcement to that effect, starting from the August 2025 admission cycle.
Some lawyers have successfully obtained court orders to halt the implementation of the policy. For instance, John Aikpokpo-Martins, a Delta State-based lawyer, had sued JAMB and Edwin Clark University. The case was before the Delta State High Court in Warri.
On Thursday, following the lawsuit, the court ordered that JAMB and Edwin Clark University not go ahead with the policy until the substantive case was determined.
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