Alleged Sexual Harassment, Recruitment Controversy Rock News Agency of Nigeria as Female Employee Questions Grade Level Placement

Secrets Reporters

A recruitment controversy has erupted at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) following allegations that a female employee was placed on a lower grade level after allegedly rejecting persistent personal advances from an official linked to the agency’s recent recruitment exercise.

The allegations were contained in an open letter published on Facebook by Femi Ogunshola and addressed to the Managing Director of NAN, Mr. Ali M. Ali.

At the centre of the controversy is Miss Ogunola Folashade Adunni, an Accounting graduate of Nasarawa State University, who served in NAN’s Accounts Department during her National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) between March 27, 2019, and March 2020.

According to the open letter, Ogunola was retained after her service year as a casual employee through the support of the former Director of Finance and Accounts, Mr. Dele Oladipo Ojo, in recognition of what was described as her dedication and commitment to duty.

However, during the agency’s recent recruitment exercise, she was reportedly placed on Grade Level 05 Step 2 despite her university qualification, NYSC service within the agency and nearly four years of experience as a casual employee.

The letter further alleged that some of her colleagues, who were also casual employees and, in some cases, joined after her, were reportedly placed on Grade Level 09.

Ogunshola alleged that Ogunola had been subjected to persistent and unwelcome personal advances by an official allegedly connected with the recruitment process.

According to the letter, after she repeatedly rejected the alleged advances, decisions affecting her employment were influenced to her disadvantage.

«”These allegations are extremely serious. I do not present them as established facts, but they are sufficiently grave,” Ogunshola wrote while calling for an independent review of her placement.»

The letter also alleged that the official believed Ogunola was in a relationship with the former Director of Finance and Accounts, Mr. Dele Oladipo Ojo—an allegation Ogunshola described as false.

According to him, after attempts to woo her allegedly failed, the official resorted to victimising her, ultimately resulting in her placement on Grade Level 05 Step 2.

Ogunshola argued that the grade level is ordinarily associated with lower entry qualifications and questioned why a university graduate who had already served the agency for several years would be placed at that level.

He maintained that graduates employed by NAN are ordinarily expected to be placed on higher grade levels, adding that the circumstances surrounding Ogunola’s placement raise concerns about fairness, transparency and due process.

The letter further disclosed that Ogunshola contacted Mr. Abdulhadi Khaliel, former Director of Administration and now Special Adviser on Policy and Strategy to the NAN Managing Director, to understand the reason behind the decision.

According to Ogunshola, Khaliel responded that “it is destiny that placed her on Level 5 and that she could be upgraded at a later date.”

Ogunshola rejected the explanation, arguing that employment decisions in a federal public institution should be based on established guidelines, qualifications and merit rather than fate or future promises.

He questioned how the possibility of a future promotion could justify placing a university graduate with years of service on Grade Level 05 Step 2 while others with similar backgrounds were reportedly placed on Grade Level 09.

The letter also claimed that the agency’s Editor-in-Chief made several attempts to persuade the Special Adviser on Policy and Strategy to review Ogunola’s placement and assign her to what was described as the appropriate grade level.

According to Ogunshola, those efforts were unsuccessful.

He further alleged that when another female applicant declined an employment offer because of her posting location, the Editor-in-Chief reportedly approached the Managing Director’s Personal Assistant to recommend Ogunola for the vacant position.

That request, according to the letter, was also declined, leaving Ogunola on Grade Level 05 Step 2.

Ogunshola stated that before making the matter public, he made several attempts to reach the NAN Managing Director by telephone but was unable to secure a resolution.

He further disclosed that he contacted the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, a former Managing Director of NAN, because of the seriousness of the allegations.

According to Ogunshola, Onanuga requested details of the matter, which were subsequently forwarded to him. He added that although he later followed up by telephone, he had not received any feedback as of the time the letter was published.

The open letter expressed concern that the controversy could damage the integrity and public image of NAN, an institution Ogunshola described as one that had earned respect for its professionalism over the years.

He referenced former heads of the agency, including the late Dame Oluremi Oyo, Mr. Akin Osuntokun, Mr. Bayo Onanuga and Mr. Ima Niboro, stating that each contributed to preserving the agency’s reputation.

Ogunshola urged the Managing Director to treat the allegations with urgency and ensure that no official under his leadership undermines the integrity of the organisation.

He also warned that making the matter public could expose Ogunola to victimisation or possible disengagement and appealed to management to handle the issue with fairness and sensitivity.

The letter called for a review of Ogunola’s placement, an examination of the circumstances surrounding the recruitment exercise and appropriate action where necessary.

Beyond the allegations of harassment, the controversy has also raised questions about the transparency of NAN’s recruitment process following the emergence of an appointment letter suggesting that the exercise may not have been publicly advertised.

The appointment letter, dated March 13, 2026, was issued on the official letterhead of the News Agency of Nigeria, Wada Maida House, Abuja.

With reference number NAN/ADM/SUB/1284/I, the letter offered Ogunola Folashade Adunni a provisional appointment as a Data Processing Officer.

It stated in part:

“Following your application to the Agency for employment and your success at the examination, I am pleased to inform you that we are willing to offer you appointment on probation as a Data Processing Officer in the Agency on the terms and conditions laid down in this letter.”

The appointment letter also indicated that the position carried a salary placement of Grade Level 05 Step 2.

Its emergence has prompted questions about the recruitment process, as there was no publicly known advertisement inviting qualified Nigerians to apply for vacancies at the agency.

Findings by Secrets Reporters indicate that there was no widely circulated advertisement in national newspapers or publicly available notice announcing the recruitment exercise.

For a federal government agency, such circumstances raise questions about transparency, openness and compliance with established principles governing public sector recruitment.

The appointment letter confirms that an examination was conducted. However, several questions remain unanswered, including when vacancies were advertised, how applicants were informed, how candidates were shortlisted, how many applicants participated in the examination, who supervised the recruitment process and whether the Federal Character Commission was involved.

The Federal Character principle is intended to promote fairness, equal opportunity and balanced representation in federal institutions while discouraging favouritism and opaque recruitment practices.

The emergence of the appointment letter has therefore renewed scrutiny of the agency’s recruitment process.

Where appointments are made without any publicly known recruitment advertisement, questions naturally arise regarding who was informed of the vacancies, who was excluded from the process and the criteria used in selecting successful candidates.

The circumstances surrounding the recruitment exercise have placed the management of NAN under public scrutiny and reignited concerns over whether employment opportunities in some federal institutions are being openly competed for or quietly distributed through insider networks.

As of the time of filing this report, NAN had not publicly responded to the allegations contained in the open letter, while the March 13, 2026 appointment letter remains central to the questions being raised about the transparency of the agency’s recruitment process.