Immigration Increases Production Capacity To Beat Deadline For Passport Backlogs

Comptroller–General, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Mr
Muhammad Babandede, has said the service has increased its
production capacity to beat the May 31 deadline set to clear
backlog of passport applications.

Babandede announced this while briefing newsmen on the NIS
passport reforms and recruitment exercise, yesterday, in Abuja. He
said that the passport production centres across the country were
working round the clock to clear the backlogs before the
commencement of the new passport regime on June 1. NIS boss also
gave assurance that the service had enough booklet, adding that a
total of 23,903 passports were currently awaiting collection by the
applicants.

According to him, more than 35,000 passports had been produced
in the last few days, with about 22,840 collected, 23,903 not
collected and 28 damaged. He, however, urged all applicants to be
on alert as text messages were being sent to their registered phone
numbers, adding that those that had turned off their Do not Disturb
button on their phones to reactivate.

Babandede assured applicants that the more than 100,000 pending
applications would be attended to before the deadline of May
31.

“The major challenge we have now is not booklet but production
capacity and we have added two production lines to Ikoyi and Ibadan
centres,” he said. He also said that all passport collection
centres would be opened from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily for
applicants.

He warned that the any officer involved in passports
racketeering would be dealt with going forward, adding that the
erring officers were partly responsible for the uncollected
passports. On recruitment, NIS boss said that the current
recruitment exercise was the best ever in immigration and assured
all applicants of transparency and fairness.

He said that the exercise was being carried out in the six
geopolitical zones of the country to take 4,000 applicants out of
6,005 applicants invited.

He added that the service had been fair by ensuring federal
character principle.

Comptroller–General, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Mr
Muhammad Babandede, has said the service has increased its
production capacity to beat the May 31 deadline set to clear
backlog of passport applications.

Babandede announced this while briefing newsmen on the NIS
passport reforms and recruitment exercise, yesterday, in Abuja. He
said that the passport production centres across the country were
working round the clock to clear the backlogs before the
commencement of the new passport regime on June 1. NIS boss also
gave assurance that the service had enough booklet, adding that a
total of 23,903 passports were currently awaiting collection by the
applicants.

According to him, more than 35,000 passports had been produced
in the last few days, with about 22,840 collected, 23,903 not
collected and 28 damaged. He, however, urged all applicants to be
on alert as text messages were being sent to their registered phone
numbers, adding that those that had turned off their Do not Disturb
button on their phones to reactivate.

Babandede assured applicants that the more than 100,000 pending
applications would be attended to before the deadline of May
31.

“The major challenge we have now is not booklet but production
capacity and we have added two production lines to Ikoyi and Ibadan
centres,” he said. He also said that all passport collection
centres would be opened from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily for
applicants.

He warned that the any officer involved in passports
racketeering would be dealt with going forward, adding that the
erring officers were partly responsible for the uncollected
passports. On recruitment, NIS boss said that the current
recruitment exercise was the best ever in immigration and assured
all applicants of transparency and fairness.

He said that the exercise was being carried out in the six
geopolitical zones of the country to take 4,000 applicants out of
6,005 applicants invited.

He added that the service had been fair by ensuring federal
character principle.