ITF arrests fraudster for selling fake skills acquisition forms in Jos

The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) has on Friday advised Nigerians to be aware of fraudsters selling fake 2022 skills and empowerment forms even when the ITF has not embarked on any recruitment exercise.

Director of Administration and Human Resource of the Industrial Training Fund Mr Tajudeen Ishola gave the warning while speaking with Journalists at the ITF Headquarters in Jos on Friday when the agency discovered a 22 years man, Alamba Dennis who printed fake forms selling to mostly women and youths at the cost ranging from N700 to N1500.

“We got a report that our intervention program forms are being sold to general public and we set the machinery in motion and in the process we discover one Alamba Dennis with forms selling to the public attaching the trade and fees on it, but ITF forms are free and secondly ITF has not started any recruitment or issuing forms for skills acquisition”.

Ishola advised Nigerians to be aware that ITF doesn’t attached a fee on its skills acquisition forms or recruitment, saying every form is free and shouldn’t be sold and without collaboration with any group as seen in the fake form.

He reiterated that in the event that the ITF plans for skills acquisition program or to recruit, it will be in line with the extant Federal Civil Service Commission’s regulations guiding the operations of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) which are strictly adhered to by the ITF, that all vacancies shall be advertised in at least two newspapers circulating nationally, giving prospective candidates a minimum of six weeks within which to apply.

The suspect a 22-year-old student of Jos ECWA Theological Seminary (JETS), identified as Dennis who was arrested by the Nigeria Police, Anglo-Jos Division, Plateau State for alleged forgery confessed to have printed ITF skills acquisition forms in December 2021, and was selling them to members of the public at N700 and 1500.

He noted that he had engaged the service of two innocent women who were photocopying the forged forms and selling them to women and youths in some parts of Plateau State.

The theology student said the women had sold several number of forms amounting to N85,000 between December, 2021 and now.

He confessed that he printed the form showing ITF in collaboration with Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), offering skills acquisition programme to members of the public to enable him attract attention of Christian youths and women.

While speaking to Journalists in Jos before being handed over to the Anglo-Jos Police Division for prosecution, he said: “I am a student of Jos Theological Seminary (JETS), I forged ITF form for skills acquisition programme and I am selling it to members of the public.

“I forged the form in December 2021 because I was sent away from school for lack of payment of tuition fee and I had nobody to assist me that was why I forge the form and I am selling them to pay my school fee.

“I printed the original copy and I gave two women who are photocopying and selling to people. The women have realized N85,000 from selling the forms and they have handed over the money to me.”