About 10,700 civil servants in the Federal Capital Territory Administration have commenced the 2026 promotion examination, with the exercise expected to continue through next week at designated centres in Abuja.
The examination, organised by the FCT Civil Service Commission, is for eligible civil servants seeking promotion and is also part of efforts to clear promotion backlogs inherited by the Commission since its establishment in 2024.
The Chairman of the Commission, Engr. Emeka Ezeh, who monitored the exercise, said the Commission had cleared the outstanding promotion backlogs and would conduct only the corresponding annual promotion exercise from 2027.
“About 10,700 of them are going to have the exam that started today. It’s going to run throughout this week up to next week, and we believe that at the end of the exercise, those who are successful will be promoted,” Ezeh said.
Ezeh said the exercise followed the directive of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, that civil servants in the territory should be promoted when due.
He said clearing the promotion backlog had been one of the Commission’s priorities since it became operational in 2024.
“In 2026, the Commission has cleared all the backlogs of all the outstanding promotions, so that by 2027, we’ll be conducting only the 2027 promotion exercise,” he said.
Ezeh said the Commission had introduced measures based on lessons from the previous examination to address delays, overcrowding and technical problems.
He said the measures included starting the examination early, using generators rather than relying solely on electricity supplied by the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), and issuing examination cards on a first-come, first-served basis.
“With each outing, we learn from the mistakes of the previous one. Part of what we have learned is that we needed to start on time and be sure we are on generator rather than being on AEDC so that the issue of glitches will not arise,” he explained.
According to him, candidates who arrived early were allowed to write their examinations and leave, ensuring a continuous flow of participants through the centres.
The Commission chairman, however, cautioned participants against assuming that meeting the minimum examination score automatically guaranteed promotion.
He said promotion in the FCT civil service was subject to three conditions: maturity on the current post, attainment of the prescribed minimum score and availability of vacancies.
Ezeh said officers below Level 14, from Level 7, must have spent at least three years on their current posts, while officers on the Directorate cadre, from Assistant Director upwards, must have spent at least four years on their current posts.
He added that candidates must not have disciplinary cases against them.
“The Public Service Rule and our guideline for appointment for promotion says that promotion shall be based on merit only,” Ezeh said.
Explaining how vacancies would affect promotion, he said where there were three vacancies and 10 qualified candidates, only the three candidates with the highest scores would be promoted.
“If somebody scored 90, another 85, another 80, and then somebody scored 75, 65, 70, only the 90, 85 and 80 will be promoted in that ranking order,” he said.
He stressed that candidates who met the minimum cut-off but fell outside the available vacancies would not necessarily have failed the examination.
“It does not mean that others did not pass; they met the minimum cut-off mark, but there are others who performed better than them. So we choose the best among those who are successful,” Ezeh said.
The Joint Union Action Congress (JUAC), FCT/FCDA, which monitored the examination, said the organisation of the exercise had improved compared with the previous one.
The Secretary of JUAC, Comrade Abdullahi Umar Saleh, said the union’s monitoring team observed better arrangements at the examination venue.
He cited reduced overcrowding, improved ventilation and adequate lighting.
“There is a great improvement compared to the previous one. The venue was not overpopulated, and there is actually proper ventilation. I can see fans all over. There are well-lit points everywhere; it is looking bright,” Saleh said.
Saleh said JUAC recognised that existing public service rules made promotion subject to the availability of vacancies.
However, he said teachers had been seeking special consideration because of the nature of their profession.
“Teachers claim that they are professionals and they need to be given preferential treatment, that FCTA or Civil Service Commission should look into their case and see how they can waive vacancy arrangement for them because they are giving essential services of impacting knowledge to the populace,” he said.
Saleh disclosed that discussions were ongoing between the FCT Administration, the minister and the unions over the matter, adding that the minister had directed the parties to maintain the status quo pending further deliberations.
The FCTA Department of Security Services also confirmed that security arrangements had been put in place for the exercise.
The Director of the department, Mr Adamu Gwary, said necessary measures had been deployed to prevent disruptions during the examination.
Some participants also expressed satisfaction with the organisation of the examination.
Temitope Kayode and Adama Zakari, both of the Abuja Infrastructure Investment Centre, described the exercise as smooth and orderly.
The 2026 promotion examination is expected to continue through next week, with thousands of FCT civil servants taking their turn at designated centres.
