THE Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Isa Jere, has directed the immediate opening of passport desks in all international airports in the country to attend to Nigerians in diaspora coming home during the Yuletide.
The directive was contained in a statement by the NIS Public Relations Officer (PRO), Tony Akuneme, in Abuja yesterday.
According to Akuneme, this is in order to have a seamless passport process for all Nigerians coming home this yuletide and those who may desire to process their passports.
“In line with this, CGIS has also directed passport offices across the country to give priority attention to such citizens living outside the country and their families, bearing in mind that most of them have a specific time of returning to their countries of residence.
“The CGIS affirmed the commitment of the service to continue rendering effective and efficient service delivery to all Nigerians both at home and abroad, as well as non-Nigerians who are desirous of using any of the service windows,” he added.
Recently the NIS began Saturday operation to fast-track the issuance of passports and this would run till Jan. 31, 2023.
Recalled that the scarcity of passport booklets at the Nigeria Immigration passport offices nationwide was reportedly being exploited by some NIS personnel.
Checks by NaijaTimes revealed that passport applicants are finding it difficult to obtain the travel document due to the negotiation between the Federal Government and a contractor, Iris Smart Technology Limited.
It was gathred that the Ministry of Interior and ISTL had been negotiating new contract terms in relation to the directive by President Muhammadu Buhari, that the e-passports should be produced locally. The booklets are currently produced in Malaysia.
The negotiation which started last year had affected the supply of the passport booklets, leading to the scarcity of the document.
Meanwhile, many NIS officers are reportedly taking advantage of the scarcity to engage in passport racketeering.
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