The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, on Tuesday paid an unannounced visit to the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) passport office in Gwagwalada, Abuja, where he criticised delays in passport processing and warned applicants against paying fees outside official charges.
During the inspection, the minister toured the VIP and Children section of the passport office and interacted with immigration officials and applicants, questioning why people were still waiting long after the office was expected to begin operations.
Tunji-Ojo cautioned applicants against giving money to officials for unofficial expenses, stressing that Nigerians had already paid in full for passport services.
“I don’t want to hear that you are collecting money for diesel or paper. Nigerians have paid for their passports completely. Serve them diligently,” he said.
He expressed displeasure that only a few applicants had been attended to several hours after opening time, despite the section being designated for expedited services.
“So it means that by 9:30am, I expect to see at least one or two applicants here. Because I can see some people waiting downstairs, and our responsibility is to be efficient,” the minister stated.
The minister also questioned the pace of enrolment and biometric capturing, noting that each applicant should be processed within minutes.
“How long does it take to do an enrolment? Three minutes. So three times seven, that is twenty-one minutes,” he said.
Immigration officials admitted that although the office was scheduled to open by 8am, operations only commenced around 9am after the generator was powered.
“We are supposed to open by eight,” one official said, explaining that electricity supply was restored after applicants had already arrived.
Tunji-Ojo criticised the practice of completing enrolment for all applicants before starting biometric capturing, insisting that both processes should be carried out simultaneously to reduce waiting time.
“It doesn’t make sense to me. People are there waiting. Some of these people still need to go to work. Some of these people have other things to do,” he said, describing the situation as unacceptable.
“You are wasting people’s precious time. Time is money. Time is expensive. It is unacceptable,” the minister added.
He also faulted the under-utilisation of the VIP and Children section, noting that applicants in other sections could have been redirected to ease congestion.
“It will not cost you anything if you use this place for them,” he said.
Reiterating the need for efficiency and fairness, Tunji-Ojo stressed that public service must be people-focused.
“Nigeria has no VIP. When you wear this uniform, you wear a uniform of sacrifice. You are here to work for the people,” the minister said.