Implementation of Federal Character Principle in Staff Recruitment in the Selected Universities - Nigeria, 2014-2018

This paper seeks to assess the implementation of the Federal Character Principle in Staff Recruitment in selected universities in the North-West geopolitical zone, Nigeria. Managing diversity in a federal system of government is becoming problematic and challenging, because majority of states are grossly underrepresented and other are grossly over- represented in the federal public service. The study examines the extent to which the universities apply and how the commission monitors the implementation of Principle in Staff Recruitment. The study covers a period offive years (2014 to 2018) and focus on Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and Bayero University Kano. The study relied on documentary sources of data collection, staff distribution list and reciiAitment data of these universities, through quality control criteria to analyse documents which include credibility, authenticity, responsiveness and meaning. The study adopts System Theory where it reveals that there is clash between the internal rules for employment in the universities and the constitutional provision of Federal Character Commission; this has led to the unsatisfactory result in the application and monitoring staff recruitment principle by the universities and the commission. The study recommends that there should be synergy between constitutional provision of the Federal Character Commission on Staff Recruitment Principle and the Universities ’ internal rules for employment, in order to avoid clashes between the Commission’s provision and Universities ’ internal rules for employment.