As if to make them shift focus from their main goal of going through with a nationwide protest that has been proposed to happen in six days, job-seeking citizens who thought a rarely seen career opening posted by their country’s national oil company, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited could be their breakthrough ended up being disappointed, and this is because the recruitment website lacked connectivity.

Two hours after the company around breakfast time on Friday 26 asked a question or posted an invitation to anyone passionate about building an exciting career in NNPC Limited, the audience was already feeling tricked. This seems to be the reflection of the rather high degree of discontentment, likewise doubt, with the government and its agencies in the past weeks.

ALSO READ: Dangote Refinery squirrelling through strict IOCs blocks

Particularly with the recently rebranded NNPCL facing a September public hearing being hosted by a Senate committee investigating alleged economic sabotage in the Nigerian petroleum industry. In the people’s psyche, the call for hires via the oil company’s X account is seen as unusual. And so, when visiting profiles clicked the recruitment link and the response they got was a requested source is not found display, they weren’t really surprised.

The visitors felt like the rarity of a vacancy was set up to distract them from the August 1 protest that everyone has been talking about. President Bola Tinubu’s drastic economic reforms which started last year have been anything but easy both for ordinary Nigerians and himself as seen through several disgruntled voices airing their views.

With the way that the planned protest looks certain to be held, the president has been meeting with stakeholders including consultations with both spiritual and traditional authorities as a way of appealing to the people to grant him more patience.

Within 14 months of being president, Mr Tinubu would suspect that a 26.75% interest rate isn’t the best way to help manufacturers and there is also the 28-year high inflation of 34.19 percent that is the result of that.

Due to these disadvantages that the people face, there isn’t any question that demonstrations won’t go on even though various security bodies are wary that protest staging points could be hijacked like the #EndSARS rebellion of 2020 at the Lekki Toll Plaza in Lagos.

ALSO READ: Manufacturers say 26.75% interest rate is the hardest they have bled yet

No matter if the Friday vacancy is real or not, an X profile Lukman Isah sees a win for Nigerians in his comment replying to the failed job post: Some may say that a threat of protest is ineffective, but the fact is, it has already made an impact. Even if they’re not actively recruiting, they’ve been rattled, and this is just the beginning of a series of repercussions.

Some may say that a threat of protest is ineffective, but the fact is, it has already made an impact. Even if they're not actively recruiting, they've been rattled, and this is just the beginning of a series of repercussions.

— Lukman Isah 🇳🇬 (@LukmanI80713793) July 26, 2024

The NNPC Limited although now a private company is wholly owned by Nigerians who have so many questions about its perceived laxity and inefficiency in dealing with problems like the one going on with the May 2023-commissioned Dangote Refinery which is the largest single-train plant in the world.

In addition to an NNPCL team attending the public hearing coming up in two months, a representative from Dangote will be one of the faces expected according to yesterday’s media briefing anchored by the Leader of the Senate and Chairman, Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Alleged Economic Sabotage in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele.

ALSO READ: Hawkish Nigerian Senate bans a member who accused it of padding the 2024 budget

Back to NNPCL’s social media page where the faulty vacancies link is still hanging, there was another tweet telling those who are already trying to apply for jobs why things aren’t working and to also hang in there.

Specifically, the message from the company says that our team is working assiduously to accommodate the surge of applications. While we acknowledge the keen interest of Nigerians in having an exciting career experience with us, we reassure all Nigerians of a transparent and merit-based recruitment process.

Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.