Not yet uhuru at chaotic passport processing centres

After initial ‘magic wand’ that cleared passport backlog in weeks and initiated reform of the tortuous processing system, a lull has since returned to that arm of the Nigeria Immigration Service. Self-evident is the failure to commence contactless biometric services amid the completion of the Data Control and Command Centre – a reason the concerned public are now sceptical of the Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo-led reform, BERTRAM NWANNEKANMA, and TINA ABEKU report.

For decades, the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has been on the crucible over its continuous inability to solve the debacle of international passport issuance, and management.

It was in light of this that the Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, at the inception of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, raised Nigerians’ expectations, when he, on Wednesday, August 30, 2023, by giving a marching order to the NIS to dismantle all bottlenecks that were hindering the swift issuance of passport to Nigerians.

The minister did not only promise to initiate reforms and tackle challenges associated with the issuance of international passports, but he also announced the clearance of 204, 332 alleged backlogs that he met on the ground, just as he directed the NIS to immediately disengage itself from any partnership found to be hampering the speedy issuance of passports to Nigerians.

Speaking during his maiden familiarisation visit to formations under the Ministry of Interior, in Abuja, Dr Tunji-Ojo informed the NIS that his leadership was poised to drive the needed reforms that would actualise the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He, thereafter, assured officers and men of the service that new reforms and policies would be rolled out to boost their efforts further.

While noting that getting a Nigerian passport remains a right and not a privilege, he reminded the NIS that Nigerians who are living outside the shores of the country deserve to be respected, urging the London Immigration Office to improve its services and accord Nigerians maximum respect as they seek to obtain, or renew their travel documents.

Last May, the minister during his inspection of electronic gates at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport’s new terminal, in Abuja, announced that home delivery of Nigeria passports would commence in June, hence, Nigerians that desire to obtain their passports in the comfort of their homes would have their dreams actualised.

He revealed that the delivery service would not cover every location to prevent the system from being overloaded or damaged, but would begin in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kano, and Abuja.

On that occasion, the minister, who also informed that the NIS has been using a private company’s data centre for visa processing hinted that the final presentation of the electronic visa has been completed, adding that it would reduce the visa processing time from 72 hours to 48 hours, “the passport automation process is almost complete.”

More than one year after he made these disclosures, he also assured that no stone would be left unturned in ensuring that Nigerians have a smooth experience with passport issuance. But the plight of Nigerians has not improved in this regard.

The Guardian investigation revealed that even the little improvements recorded within the system of late were gradually giving way, thereby setting the stage for a return to the gloomy past.

This is confirmed by the deluge of complaints over delayed passport issuance, as many, who applied for renewal of their passports have been waiting for months now without success as new copies of passports have allegedly not been printed for months.

Also swirling around, are complaints that NIS officers across the country are still extorting applicants/passport seekers in a vicious cycle that has continued to thrive with no reprieve in sight.

Wilson Egbun, who applied for a passport over six months ago in anticipation of an official international trip, told The Guardian that the passport is yet to be ready despite several assurances from immigration officers, who have allegedly milked him of more than N300, 000 while the wait lasts.

“It is a horrendous experience that has put me through some great psychological stress. Each time I go there, or call to ask if my passport is ready, the officer will tell me that it is at a particular point and that the people that are handling it are asking for some money before they can process it.

“This went on for a long time, but now, he has stopped picking my calls, and I have since given up on the trip. Now, I am trying to get my passport through another officer, a female who was introduced to me. She seems forthcoming, so I am hoping to get the passport and once I do, I will tell the whole world the name of the officer who extorted me, but failed to deliver my passport to me,” the applicant said.

Egbun’s case is not unique. Another applicant, who simply identified himself as Akintunde, stated that he had yet to collect his international passport over a month after his image and bio-data were captured. This he said was contrary to what the government promised.

He claimed that the delay has created a travelling nightmare for him, as he has had to delay his business trip to Turkey pending the issuance of his 10-year international passport.

He appealed to the relevant authorities to activate mechanisms to quicken the processes of issuing passports to applicants so that their commercial and personal interests aren’t encumbered.

An investigation by The Guardian reveals that service providers such as Iris Smart Technologies Limited are owed over N16 billion, while printed booklets are stuck in the Nigeria Customs Service and DHL warehouses due to failure to offset outstanding payments.

A reliable source within the NIS revealed: “The Customs Service, DHL, and two Nigerian banks are among service providers that are insisting on the payment of their outstanding N16 billion balance before the documents would be released to us.”

The source added that “manufacturing firms based in Slovenia, Malaysia, and another in Malta handling the e-passport projects are yet to be reimbursed in line with our agreement to always make payment two weeks after printing and supplying the e-passports,” he stated.

But the Principal Staff Officer to the Comptroller General of the NIS, and the immediate past spokesperson of the agency, Dotun Aridegbe, contradicted some of these claims and reports, insisting that there are no hitches whatsoever in the passport production process as the system has been seamless.

“There is nothing of such, no report, nothing and I am hearing this for the first time. It is not true that there are hitches. Passports are everywhere, and they are being issued accordingly. There are no hiccups at all.

“You will agree with me that lately there hasn’t been anything negative about passports because issuance has been seamless; very seamless now, and everybody is getting their passports as at and when due,” he stressed.

For a retired NIS official, Joachim Olumba, hiccups expressed in the passport management process could boil down to poor welfare packages for operatives.
Olumba urged the minister to exercise caution in portraying the NIS as a symbol of corruption, saying that it was misleading and unfair to officers and men of the service, especially as the case of the agency is not an isolated one.

“So, the case of the NIS is not an isolated one. Painting a picture, which portrays the service as a strange symbol of corruption is grossly misleading and unfair to officers and men.

“I am certain that as soon as the root causes of the problems in the passport administration are addressed, the attendant extortion and exploitation of the public will vanish,” he said.

Olumba added: “Immigration personnel are poorly remunerated. Salaries and allowances are nothing to write home about. The working conditions for them are very poor. They are on the frontline; at border posts confronting desperate and deadly cross-border criminals while discharging their statutory duties of border control, patrol, surveillance, and security.”

Speaking on the issue, the National Coordinator of the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), Emmanuel Onwubiko, said that the association has been inundated with complaints from Nigerians applying for fresh international passports, and those who are trying to renew theirs.

According to him, there have been delays in issuing the final copies of the documents long after data-capturing activities are concluded, particularly at the Abuja Headquarters of the NIS. Onwubiko said that about a dozen applicants have reached his organisation through their WhatsApp line on the delay.

According to him, one of those identified simply as Cecilia said that over two months after her data was captured, she was informed confidentially that the printing of new passports was experiencing technical difficulties, and that soon the problems would be fixed.

Another applicant, who elected to remain anonymous said that he got his passport after about a month, but not without parting with some money as a bribe at the Abuja Headquarters of the NIS.

Speaking on the unavailability of international passports at home and in Nigeria’s Foreign Missions, the Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, (CISLAC), Auwal Musa, said that a lot of corruption is going on in the passports management process both in Nigeria and in foreign missions. He lamented: “Too much corruption and extortion is going on in our foreign missions, especially concerning services that Nigerians are supposed to get.

“Here in the United States, everywhere you go – be it Washington D.C or New York, Nigerians are complaining about the officials in our Embassy.”

Musa, who is also the Board of Trustees Chairman of Amnesty International Nigeria, told The Guardian that: “Corruption persists because there are stories and allegations of individuals still paying money to immigration officials to fast track their passport application processes.

“In some cases, these individuals willingly offer bribes to the officials while in other cases, officials demand money in exchange for fast-tracking of the process.” He added: “One factor that has contributed to this is the long wait after application via the portal before applicants receive their passports.

“Secondly, the absence of proper disciplinary measures for immigration officials found guilty of collecting bribes and delaying the process has further compounded the issue.”

Musa urged the Nigerian Immigration Service to “put in place mechanisms to expose and punish corrupt officials within the service without fear or favour even as the Federal Government looks into addressing issues of scarcity of booklets, which has contributed immensely to the delay in the passport application process.

“There should be mass sensitisation of citizens by the Nigerian Immigration Service on the passport application process as highlighted on the website.”