Overwhelmed by the plethora of demands by Nigerians desirous of leaving the country and pressured by the producers of the Nigerian passport to find the right pricing for the product, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) decided to suspend production of passports for two weeks.
Within that period, the NIS is expected to clear all the backlogs, including request for renewal and application for new passports, whose process had started and possible re-organisation of the top hierarchy of agency.
NIS in its verifiable twitter handle had stated: “All passport issuing centres have been directed to clear existing backlog of application on or before 31st May, 2021. To this effect, requests for fresh and reissue shall not be entertained with effect from 18th May 2021 to 31st May 2021 in all centres.”
THISDAY investigations revealed that there has been upsurge for demands for passports because, “people are desperately leaving the country.” Also, sources from the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) disclosed that there has been upsurge in the number of Nigerians that are going for medical assessment for possible permanent stay in the UK, Australia and Canada.
“There are more asylum seekers from Nigeria. The demand for passport has increased exponentially, especially from the southern part of the country,” the source added.
THISDAY learnt that since last year there has been a spike in the demand of passports but many of those who had completed the requirements were yet to receive their passports so NIS faced piling demand which could reach choking level if Immigration continued to delay the issuance of completed passports. Passport Office Ikoyi, Lagos records the highest passport demand in Nigeria with average demand of 15,000-20,000 monthly, while Festac and Alausa offices produce about 50 per cent of that figure of about 7,500 to 10, 000 passports monthly.
But Immigration official from Ikoyi officer told THISDAY that the figures had doubled since after the lockdown in 2020, and the demand has continued unabated until the temporary suspension of passport issuance on May 17, 2021.
Immigration official at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos told THISDAY since after the lockdown the number of Nigerians who travel has continued to increase; although trips out of the country is seasonal, “there are high seasons and low seasons, but there have been progressive increase in the number of people that travel.”
“What is characteristic about migration is that more people leave the country during harsh economic situation and when the economy gets better more people will return to the country.
“This is not peculiar to Nigeria. But demographically, more people travel from southern Nigeria. In fact, it is largely southerners that pay for passports, even in the north; people from the south make more demand for passports.
“This is the first time scarcity of passport has lasted for too long. That is the reason why some of us feel that the scarcity may have been deliberate because this one lasted for over six months. There has not been any time in the past such scarcity lasted for up to two months.
“A lot of people are suffering because of this. Some Nigerians in Diaspora who returned to renew their passports dropped it and ran back overseas to secure their jobs. Students studying overseas seem to be the hardest hit because they cannot go to school. This is very tough for them,” a senior Immigration official who pleaded to remain anonymous told THISDAY.
THISDAY also learnt that the technical partner to NIS, Newworks Solution & Investment Limited and the producers of the passport, Irish Smart Technology Nigeria have been clamouring for the increase in the cost of the passports so that it could be profitable, due to naira depreciation.
Informed source disclosed to THISDAY that the new regime that would start in June, may be accompanied by new prices of the products and in order to sanitise the system, everything would be done online: applicants would make their application online and when the passports are ready Immigration would communicate to them online and now the period would take a minimum of six weeks.
THISDAY also learnt that the major reason why the passport booklets were scarce was because the producer of the passports, Irish Technologies was allegedly owed debts that run into millions of dollars by the Ministry of Interior. Although it was not confirmed that the debts had been paid but with the planned increase in the price of the products, it is hoped that Nigeria would be able to offset the debts.
Currently the Nigerian passports are produced overseas. The Ministry had a Public, Private Partnership (PPP) agreement with the foreign company, which produces the enhanced e-passport, but it has refused to supply the product due to the alleged huge debts.
Informed source from NIS said that there has been amicable resolution between the Ministry of Interior, the Nigeria Immigration Service and its partners to solve the impasse, noting that by the time the new regime would kick off on June 1, 2021 “the whole issues would be resolved.”
However, industry observer told THISDAY that the rules to restrain passport applicants from having access to Immigration officials have been there, “but it is these officials that flout the rules to make extra money for themselves; so even this new rule that will go with the new passport regime will not stand.”
