Disappointment as FG Flops on Promises to Fast-Track Passport Processing, Begin Home Delivery
- Since the interior minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo promised to improve passport processing, Nigerians are yet to see this materialise
- Insider information from the National Immigration Services (NIS) has shown that touts and fraudulent activities are still common
- This has become a common practice for many Nigerians living in the north of the country and traders in Lagos and the South East markets
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
Despite the efforts of interior minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo to guarantee transparent passport processing and to ensure that applicants have their passports in less than 36 hours after application, investigation reveals that the system still experiences delays.
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Due to the strict requirements associated with the process, insiders at the National Immigration Services (NIS) have revealed that fraudulent actions by touts and others continue to be prevalent.
Minister made promises
The minister of interior had pledged last year that starting in February of this year, no Nigerian would have to wait longer than two weeks to receive an international passport. The minister further guaranteed that passports would be sent to applicants' residences promptly.
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None of these promises have been kept up to date. Investigation revealed that many Nigerians seeking passports are unable to complete the online forms due to their level of education; instead, they turn to touts and other intermediaries to complete the paperwork and make the payment online.
More promises
One year after its pledge, the ministry is yet to fulfil any of this. The minister in his recent visit to the Lagos airport to inspect the e-gate in May 2024 said,
“So, we are looking at about two, three weeks after 1st of June, maybe 2nd or 3rd week of June, we will be able to start, and we are not starting from everywhere, because sometimes if you overload the system, you can cause the system damage. You can crash the system. You can shock the system.
"So what we are doing is we are going to start the home delivery for Lagos, for Rivers, just Lagos, Rivers, which is Port Harcourt, Kano, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kano, Abuja, those four places in Nigeria. and of course, the US, the UK in the Diaspora. We are starting with these two countries in the Diaspora, so we use it to do a proof of concept, test it, and see that it works.”
Touts fabricates documents
Thisday discovered that many Nigerians in the country's north, as well as traders in the markets in Lagos and the South East, frequently experience this.
It was discovered that some applicants who approach passport control officers end up with NIS officials as their assigned officers, who then want more money.
It has been exceedingly difficult for some applicants to obtain new passports due to the requirement for local government identification, date of birth, and National Identification Number (NIN) for reissuance of passports.
Therefore, in order to achieve that criteria, they turn to hiring touts, who fabricate various documents such as local government identities and print them in color.
Tope Adegoke, who needed the passport as a form of identification for an important scholarship told Legit.ng how she almost lost the opportunity because the passport was not ready in time.
She said,
"I was so lucky to get someone (an official) that knows someone who intervened on my behelf."
An immigration official said that the ministry of interior wanted to break away from the foreign companies that had previously printed passport booklets for Nigeria. In order to do this, the government needs to create new databases, which is why applicants are being asked to provide all the information required, even when reissuing passports.
An informed source stated that even though the Minister of Interior approved the installation of solar power at passport offices nationwide and gave Passport Control Officers (PCOs) in states permission to purchase diesel generators with N2 million when solar energy is unable to provide electricity, PCOs, other NIS officials, and their allies continue to engage in sleaze
He said,
“The truth is that you do not get your passport before one month, so the idea of getting it in two weeks is not possible. Passport booklets are available but few weeks ago the 10-year booklet was scarce and I have to confirm if it has become available. Truth is that the problem is even worse now in some passport offices. Touts are still doing their thing unchecked. The same racket still goes on in the reissue of passports and nobody is doing anything about it.”
Despite the fact that his projection did not come to pass, industry experts maintain that the minister has demonstrated a genuine commitment to facilitating Nigerians' access to passports.
Turkey finally addresses visa ban on Nigerians
Legit.ng reported that the Turkish Embassy in Nigeria has refuted rumors that have caused worry to many.
The embassy in a recent reaction confirmed that Nigerian passport holders are not prohibited from obtaining visas.
This came after reports that Ethiopia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates had revoked certain privileges for Nigerian passport holders, such as visa-on-arrival, e-visa, and outright passport issues.
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