FG orders compulsory drug tests for public service job seekers

The Federal Government has ordered the mandatory pre-employment drug testing for all prospective applicants into the Nigerian Public Service, in a move aimed at curbing the growing menace of illicit drug use and safeguarding national productivity and security.

The directive, announced through a service-wide circular issued by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), mandates all Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Extra-Ministerial Departments and Parastatals to make drug testing a core requirement in the recruitment of new personnel across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).

According to a statement released by the Director of Information and Public Relations in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Segun Imohiosen, under the new policy, MDAs are required to collaborate with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency in conducting the tests, in line with established standards and procedures.

The circular also stated that the decision forms part of President Tinubu’s broader determination to decisively fight drug and substance abuse and to insulate the nation’s workforce from practices considered inimical to efficiency, discipline, and public trust.

The Federal Government has raised alarm over what it described as the growing rate of drug and substance abuse, particularly among the country’s large youth population, warning that the trend poses serious threats to public health, workplace productivity, socio-economic development, and national security.

It noted that substance abuse within the public sector could undermine service delivery, erode institutional integrity, and weaken the government’s capacity to achieve its development goals.

According to the circular, the introduction of compulsory drug testing at the point of entry into public service is not intended as a punitive measure but as a preventive step aimed at fostering a healthy, disciplined, and reliable workforce capable of driving national development.

For years, stakeholders have raised alarms that many Nigerian youths are into drug abuse, calling on the government to take urgent steps to curb the menace.