Two Years Of Renewed Hope In Interior Ministry

There are many ways to look at visionary leadership, the capacity to translate vision into reality, as the American leadership expert Warren Bennis is justly famous for saying. Visionary leadership involves the ability to innovate and to create; which is why, according to Leroy Eimes, a leader is one who sees more than others see, who sees farther than others see, and who sees before others see; that is, one who knows, in the words of Alan Kay, that the best way to predict the future is to create it. Leadership is not about titles, positions, or flowcharts, it is about one life influencing another, says John C. Maxwell, and great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves. (Eleanor Roosevelt). If vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others (Jonathan Swift) and leadership is the art of giving people a platform for spreading ideas that work (Seth Godin), then visionary leadership means creating a platform for revolutionary ideas that shape and change the course of human existence. As President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope leadership clocks two years in office, it is apposite to consider how far the country has come in terms of strengthening its internal security organs, and how this fits into a broad strategy.

To be sure, Nigeria still grapples with internal challenges—every country does—but a close analysis of the situation so far will reveal precisely why there is cause for cheer. Precisely two years ago when President Tinubu appointed Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo as Minister of Interior, he was looking at security as the bedrock of national development. His focus is enhancing the capabilities of our security forces, promoting peace and stability, and ensuring that every Nigerian feels safe and protected, no matter where they reside.

In the last two years, digital systems have enabled the immigration authorities to better manage and monitor the flow of people across borders.

It is significant that in not more than a year, landmark achievements such as the  clearance of a backlog of 204,332 passports within a record-breaking three-week period, restoring confidence in the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), revolutionized passport processing within a two-week timeline for applications and introducing home and office delivery of passports, streamlined application process, and championing the rights of Nigerian applicants and ensuring that they receive just treatment abroad, were made. Regarding the welfare of paramilitary officers, the administration’s focus on equitable compensation and the unfolding of plans for a functional pension board to boost morale and productivity, and the alignment of paramilitary salaries with those of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to ensure fairness and equity attracted plaudits. But that was not all: there was, crucially, a focus on the criminal justice reform. This move saw to the decongestion of correctional facilities, clearance of fines and compensations worth N585 million for 4,068 inmates, and the transformation of  correctional homes into centers of rehabilitation, fostering hope and redemption for inmates.

Today, under the Renewed Hope Agenda, security infrastructure has been modernized. Among other landmark initiatives, the ministry created a state-of-the-art Data Centre and Command and Control Centre supporting new visa and passport application policies and border management; and E-Gates at airports that enhance security and efficiency. It also saw to the rehabilitation of correctional centers, with the Interior Minister earning several awards, including the Public Service Person of the Year 2023 (Leadership newspaper) for the bold and exceptional reforms. Via the Ministry of Interior, President Tinubu has demonstrated transformative leadership, fortifying Nigeria’s security. Among other extremely innovative measures, there is Safe Haven, a means of enhancing national security and community safety through partnerships with law enforcement and community leaders; Smart Border, which relates to modernized border management with advanced technologies to enhance security and facilitate trade and travel; Disaster Response Unit, which coordinates emergency responses and preparedness for disasters, and E-Visa, which simplifies the visa application process to promote tourism and international collaboration. There is also Migration Information Data Analysis System (MIDAS), a system for enhancing migration data management to inform policy decisions.

With a clinical focus on reforms and modernization, the Tinubu administration has emplaced the Immigration Service Reform Committee with a focus on modernizing the Nigerian Immigration Service to enhance efficiency, reduce corruption, and improve service delivery. It unfolded the Digital Case Management System, streamlining case handling in the justice system to enhance transparency and reduce delays. With specific reference to correctional services, reform has been built around rehabilitation and reintegration of inmates into society. A case study is the Kuje Medium Custodial Centre, where facilities have been modernized to create a more humane and effective correctional environment.

Notable achievements include increasing patrols with over 30 patrol vehicles, launching contactless biometrics, enhancing security and efficiency, designing and developing a Tier 4, 8.3 petabyte Data Centre and automating the visa application process. Before Tinubu’s Renewed Hope government, the situation in the paramilitary agencies was characterized by demoralized workforce, career stagnation, spilled over promotion exercise and female gender disenfranchised with low recruitment profile. All of that vanished with the coming on board of the Tinubu administration, which ensured the recruitment of at least 35 percent females in all recruitment processes, approval of 30,000 recruitment, promotion of over 50,000 personnel in two years, approval of peculiar allowance, implementation of modernized immigration project, and approval of paramilitary academy.

 – Salako, is Media Consultant to Minister of Interior