Nigeria’s satellites, rockets will be powered by prayers — Shehu Sani

The President of the Civil Rights Congress of Nigeria, Shehu Sani, has commented on the news that the Nigeria’s Space Agency was employing graduates of Religious Studies.

The Senator’s tweet comes after the Deputy Senate Majority Leader and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Science and Technology, Ajayi Boroffice, revealed that the Space Agency that should be employing scientists and engineers was employing graduates of Religious Studies and other unrelated courses.

Boroffice said this in Abuja at the annual National Space Dialogue/Media Conference on Space Science and Technology on Friday.

He said the agency needed to be sanitised as such actions amount to misemployment considering the fact that the support staff of the agency constitute about 80 per cent of the workforce.

Boroffice stated that for efficiency, the agency needed scientists to constitute about 70 per cent of the workforce instead of what is in existence.

Boroffice added that the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission is presently scrutinising the employment documents of the agency.

He also alleged that people are made to pay between N2 million and N2.5 million to get a job in the space agency.

He said: “How can you be taking people with religious studies in space centre?

“It is misemployment when the support staff that constitute about 80 per cent are the workforce.

“It is wrong.

“We need experience.

“We need scientists to constitute about 70 per cent of the workforce, but the reverse is the case.

“I learnt that the ICPC is around, scrutinising employment documents.

“I heard employment is earned with N2 million, N2.5 million.

“It is sad.

“We have to reexamine ourselves.

“We have to sanitise the space agency so that we can achieve the purpose of nation itself.”

While responding to the allegation, the Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, said the government was determined to correct the mistakes made.

Onu said: “I want to assure you that this administration is very interested and this Minister here is a big champion for Space Science and Technology, and we will continue to do the best we can.

“I will like to assure the Deputy Majority Leader of the Senate that we agree with you about the mistakes that were made here.

“They are also make mistakes that you can find in government institutions.

“But we are determined to correct those mistakes and we are taking the necessary steps to make sure they are corrected.”

Reacting to the development, Sani tweeted: “Space Agency allegedly employing graduates of religious studies; Our own satellites and rockets will be powered by prayers.”