Nigerians have taken to social media to lambast a member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Miriam Onuoha, after she publicly bragged about securing federal jobs for her constituents at the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the National Assembly Service Commission, and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
Onuoha, who represents the Okigwe North Federal Constituency of Imo State, had posted on X (formerly Twitter): “SECURED FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT FOR CONSTITUENTS INTO FIRS, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SERVICE COMMISSION, AND TETFUND.”
The post, which appeared to be a self-congratulatory announcement, immediately sparked outrage online, with Nigerians accusing her of promoting political favouritism and undermining the principles of merit-based recruitment into public service.
A civic tech and accountability platform, MonITNG, condemned the action in strong terms, describing it as “political patronage dressed as service.”
The group wrote: “SAD!!! This is Hon @miriam_onuoha1, proudly announcing that she ‘secured federal employment for constituents into FIRS, National Assembly Service Commission, and TETFund.’
“But this isn’t empowerment, it’s political patronage dressed as service. Public sector jobs are not rewards for loyalty. They are national opportunities meant to be accessed by all Nigerians through open, fair, and competitive recruitment processes.
“What Hon. @miriam_onuoha1 has done bypasses due process and shuts out qualified citizens who lack political connections.
“This act sends a dangerous message: that in Nigeria, who you know matters more than what you know. It deepens mistrust in public institutions and feeds a system of inequality.
“We must call this out and insist that federal jobs are earned, not gifted by politicians.”
Several other Nigerians echoed similar sentiments.
@Gabriel_bolatit asked: “When will all these people stop this nonsense approach of securing jobs for their constituents? Is the job secured on merit?”
Another user, Oluwakemi, questioned the process behind the recruitment: “The things you people now openly celebrate eehn!!! ‘Secured’ how? Were they the most qualified after going through a duly transparent recruitment process? If so, how did you now ‘secure’ their employment? What part did you play? Were you a part of the recruitment process?”
User @Ifemeluma drew attention to a possible conflict of interest, given that Onuoha chairs a committee that oversees one of the agencies involved: “Honorable, is this supposed to be a good thing?
“Yeah, it’s a good thing that your constituents got jobs but is it supposed to be you that will secure it for them?
And worse still, you secure a job in an agency you are overseeing as its committee chairman.
“A lawmaker?”
Another user, Blessed, questioned her legislative priorities: “And you dey post am for Internet? Decorum?
“How many bills have you sponsored or backed or gone against in the past two years?
“How many times have you consulted your constituency on the nature of bills in the house to ask for their leanings? Update of constituency allocations?”
Adeola wrote: “Even though all legislators do this, it doesn’t make sense to make it public. Guess you are still a learner and this isn’t an achievement to be proud of.”
As of press time, Hon. Miriam Onuoha had not responded to the criticisms or clarified whether the jobs she helped “secure” followed any official recruitment guidelines.
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