Acting comptroller-general of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), Caroline Wura-Ola Adepoju, has declared a state of emergency on passport issuance in the country.
Adepolu, who made the declaration during a surprise working visit to the Lagos State command of the service yesterday, emphasised the urgent need to address challenges faced by Nigerians in obtaining passports and declared a comprehensive plan of action to tackle the issue effectively.
According to a statement by NIS spokesman Tony Akuneme, the Adepoju’s visit to Lagos encompassed significant events that underscored the gravity of the passport crisis.
She inaugurated a state-of-the-art visa on arrival lounge at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, demonstrating her commitment to improving the overall travel experience for visitors entering Nigeria. Following this, she paid an unscheduled visit to the Alausa passport office to assess the situation firsthand.
The comptroller-general stressed the necessity to dismantle all man-made bottlenecks that impede the passport application process. She further stressed that the NIS top management was fully committed to addressing institutional and technology-based drawbacks to ensure a more efficient and streamlined service delivery.
Recognising the importance of collaboration and community engagement, the Adepoju who also embarked on a grassroots sensitisation initiative, with traditional rulers as her major target.
She commenced this effort with a visit to the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, seeking the cooperation of traditional rulers in raising awareness about the menace of human trafficking and initiating joint efforts to combat this grave issue.
