Senate moves to probe delay in issuance, renewal of int’l passport by NIS

Reps direct NIMASA to halt disbursement of $700m cabotage fund

Senate has directed its Committee on Interior to investigate circumstances leading to unwarranted delay in issuance and renewal of international passport by Nigeria Immigration Services (NIS).

The legislative chamber also mandated the committee to investigate contract award for production of international passport and turn in its report within two weeks.

The resolution followed the adoption of a motion, tagged ‘Delay on issuance, renewal of international passport by NIS’ at plenary, yesterday, sponsored by Senator Ekwunife Lilian Uche (Anambra Central).

The lawmaker, in her lead debate, said the delay was creating untold hardship for Nigerians, who need to travel out of the country or return. She affirmed that the passport is an official identity document issued to Nigerians for the purpose of traveling out of and into the country, in exercise of their rights to personal liberty and freedom of movement.

She said many Nigerians were still facing challenges over processing, despite the six-week timeline given by the Federal Government, barely a year ago.

Ekwunife said getting appointment for biometric data capturing now takes between five and eight weeks, while many applicants are forced to wait for four months for passports to be ready after the biometric exercise.

Also, the House of Representatives ordered Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to stop planned disbursement of $700 million to citizens and companies.

The lawmakers further directed the agency to present before the House, an audited statement of account showing all monies that have accrued to the Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund within seven days.

Adopting a motion of urgent public importance brought by Henry Nwawuba at the resumption of plenary, yesterday, the lawmakers directed the Committee on Local Content to engage an external auditor to review all contracts entered into in the cabotage regime and report same to the House within seven days. The committee is also to determine all monies that have accrued to the Fund, since its establishment in 2003, and report to the House within 14 days.

In the motion, Nwawuba expressed concern that since establishment of the Fund, there has been no reliable data on the total amount that has accrued, hence, there is uncertainty on actual worth of the Fund.

The lawmakers, consequently, asked the Minister of State for Transport and the NIMASA Director General to report to the committee on the state of the Fund and how it has been applied over the past 20 years.