By Stanley Nwanosike
Mr Jonpaul Okafor, a motor spare parts trader in Mgbidi, along Onitsha-Owerri Road, has planned for his first overseas trip to buy, import and open linkage with some vehicle manufacturing companies in the United States.
Okafor visited an immigration office to obtain an international passport but on approaching the gate of the immigration office, two persons in plain cloths (touts) accosted him and presented fake immigration personnel ID cards to him. The touts assured Okafor, who is unsuspecting of their nefarious intention, that they would help him short cut the processes and he would expressly get his international passport within a week.
They said: “Nwanne, you do not need to waste your precious time and energy waiting like the people you are seeing over there (pointing at people seating and waiting under a canopy for various immigration issues inside the immigration office proper). You just need to give us your two passport photographs, photocopy of your National Identity Number and fill a form of your personal details.
“Your bill is N75,000 and you come for your facial and other bio-data capturing within three days. We will get you a 64-page passport with five years validity so that you can meet all your travel concerns in the next five years,” the touts assured.
Okafor, unsuspectingly, transferred the N75,000 and met all requirements they have demanded. At the expiration of three days meant for the capturing, Okafor called but was told to exercise patient due to some hiccups in the system. He was, however, called by the touts after the fifth day that he needed to pay an additional N15,000 to correct an anomaly in his form already filled in the system.
The trader, sensing that something is wrong, complained to the chairman of his traders’ association who told him that he might have fallen into the hands of passport racketeers. When Okafor called the touts again and there was a heated argument, he demanded to meet the touts at the side of the makeshift container they met in their first contact the next day. Okafor went to the makeshift container early in the morning and made several calls for up to six hours but the cell-phones of the touts were switched off.
However, the Federal Government, on March 3, 2022, inaugurated enhanced electronic passport (e-passport) and passport production centre in the South East to totally change this ugly narrative, which many South East traders had been victims of.
Inaugurating the enhanced e-passport in Enugu, the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, said that the enhanced e-passport had over 25 security features that distinguish it from other international passports in the world.
Aregbesola, who was the immediate past Governor of Osun State, said that the enhanced e-passport, including its elaborate security features, was a major design of the Federal Government to check international passport racketeering and other forms of manipulations.
He warned that on no account should anyone make cash payment or transfer money to any individual even immigration officials, adding: “Lets help the Federal Government to check direct stealing and racketeering”.
He said that the state-of-the-art and technological-driven security features makes the enhanced e-passport virtually impossible to counterfeit or manipulate on.
According to him, we urge Nigerians to fill their forms online, pay for it online and get their biometric/bio-data capturing dates as well online; by using their simple android phones within the comfort of their homes or offices.
“Those days of asking people to help you do it or an immigration officer to assist passport applicants to fill simple passport form are over and this will help check racketeering, fraud and other manipulations in the system.
“With the enhanced e-passport, the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Interior, will eliminate all forms of corruption and racketeering in the system,” he said.
The minister said that for now, the electronic passport (e-passport) and the enhanced e-passport would be in existence side-by-side.
“Between 2019 and now, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has issued three million passports and just last year alone we issued 1.3 million passports. So, there is more need for our passports.
“The people of South East travel a lot. The enhanced e-passport, with some of its categories in longer validity and pagination, would surely help the people of the zone meet their international travel needs and insulate them from fraud,” he said.
On the passport production centre, the minister lauded President Muhammadu Buhari for his kind disposition to the ministry and the NIS for providing the most sophisticated international passport production facility in the South East, domicile in Enugu.
Aregbesola noted that the passport production facility would facilitate the ease and speed of getting passports in the zone, adding that it would not take more than six weeks for fresh applicants and three weeks for those applying to renew theirs to get the international passports.
Earlier, the acting Comptroller General of NIS, Mr Isah Idris, said the introduction of enhanced e-passport is meant to transform the entire passport issuance and processing system as well as improve service delivery to Nigerians.
Idris said that enhanced e-passport is water-resistance, durable, user-friendly and highly technological compliant. He noted that the enhanced e-passport comes in three categories: 32 pages with five years validity; 64 pages with five years validity and 64 pages with 10 years validity (only for adults above 18 years).
He said: “We have five easy steps to get your enhanced e-passport. One – using your android cell phone visit –passport.immigration.gov.ng.
“Two – fill the form and make payment online. Three – download and print the form and payment slip. Four – print appointment slip. Five – visit passport office only on the appointment date (for biometric/bio-data capturing), taking along all requirements, including appointment slip for biometric enrolment. Applicant’s National Identity Number (NIN) is a compulsory requirement for obtaining the enhanced e-passport.”
In an address, Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State, appreciated President Buhari, the minister and NIS authorities for inaugurating the enhanced e-passport and passport production facility in Enugu, meant to ensure that obtaining international passport is closer to the people of the zone.
Ugwuanyi, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Simon Ortuanya, said: “We sincerely believe that the enhanced e-passport will definitely eliminate corruption, bribery, manipulation and racketeering in the entire passport system.
“As a government, we are happy that the Federal Government, through the ministry and the NIS, has kept faith and assurance of providing Nigerians and indeed the entire citizenry an enhanced e-passport we can be proud of. The state will continue to partner the NIS and the Federal Ministry of Interior to ensure that immigration services get to all,” he said.
Speaking, Mr Dom Asogwa, the Assistant Comptroller General of NIS in charge of Zone G, assured the minister and acting Comptroller General that the NIS officers and men in the zone would continue to maintain utmost professionalism in the discharge of their duties.
Asogwa thanked President Buhari, the minister and NIS authorities for making it possible for the South East to join the league of state capitals and other cities that issue the enhanced e-passport and using the online platform for applying for passports.
“We are assuring the ministry and NIS that officers and men within the South East will continue to display high ethics and professional standard in the discharge of our duties. There will continually be zero tolerance to corruption within the zone,” he assured.
He noted that Nigerians living within the South East would definitely enjoy the multiple benefits of the enhanced e-passport and having a passport production centre within the zone.
The immigration authorities dropped some of their vital contacts for complaint or inquiry. These are: cell-phone hotline: +234 8021819988; Twitter – @nigimmigration; Facebook – @nigimmigration; Youtube – nigimmigration Servicepro; and Website –immigration.gov.ng.
The South East is comprised of five states – Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo. (NAN)
