“As CGI Advises Against Using Cash To Pay For Passport Services”
Isah Jere Idris, the Comptroller General of Immigration, has urged potential passport applicants to make sure they use the Service’s online application and payment platform in order to apply and pay for any passport category of their choice.
This was stated in a news release given to Hybrid Online News Nigeria and signed by the Service Public Relations Officer, Assistant Comptroller of Immigration, Amos Okpu.
At the launch of the improved Passport and the inauguration of the central Passport production Center today in Port Harcourt, the Comptroller General made this statement.
According to him, the Service purposefully designed a smooth online application and payment process to avoid all kinds of cash transactions, which frequently encourage shady behavior.
He urged anyone applying for passports to use the online method and issued a dire warning to any employees found to be involved in any cash transactions for passport applications.
“The upgraded ePassport facility we are launching here today is one of such continuing reform efforts to alter the overall Passport process and offer improved options to our residents,” he said.
“With the launch of the upgraded ePassport platform today, all of our passport offices in the states of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, and of course, Rivers, have been fully migrated to it.
“Passport applicants who wish to process their applications in one of these States are required to complete their forms online (via passport.immigration.gov.ng), make payment, and schedule a biometric enrolment appointment; they must then only visit the Passport Office they have designated for enrolment on the scheduled appointment date”
Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the interior minister, had declared that the passport service is extremely important and should be handled with extreme caution.
“One of the most important nationality documents that any qualified citizen should possess is a passport. It gives any holder nationality and citizenship rights in addition to enabling them to cross international borders”
The significance of this is that the processes and procedures that would allow anyone to obtain a passport must not only be transparent, credible, and easy to follow, but also the result of extreme diligence on the part of those charged with that obligation, he emphasized.
The Minister praised the NIS for the numerous reform initiatives it has brought to light on the passport platform, highlighting how fascinating it has been to watch the transition from the manually written Passport to the machine readable Passport to the electronic Passport, and now to the enhanced electronic Passport.
He stated that it is not only commendable but a tremendous accomplishment that the NIS has kept up its efforts to guarantee that the Nigerian Passport complies with all International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requirements.
He added that the upgraded ePassport is the result of the most recent advancements in passport administration and issuing technology.
“The document is of a higher grade and has 25 more security measures than the one you are currently reading. Its polycarbonate construction makes it water-resistant”
He said that it is tough to fabricate and cannot be compromised by any tricks used by people who steal identities and counterfeit goods.
He reiterated once more that his ministry would not tolerate any sort of shady behaviour that could jeopardize the reforms now in progress and issued a warning that any personnel found engaging in such dishonest behavior would face severe repercussions.
He also urged potential applicants to use the online application system and make sure their personal information is accurate for efficient processing and issuance.
Meanwhile, the Port Harcourt Passport Office Production Center was praised by the Governor of Rivers State, His Excellency, Chief Barr. Nyesom Ezenwo Wike CON, who was represented by the Deputy Governor Dr. Mrs. Ipalibo Banigo.
She urged for the continuation of the ongoing reform efforts in Passport administration and issuance to give it an enduring human face and experience and reaffirmed the State’s readiness to continue supporting all pertinent agencies in the State.
The commissioning of the Passport Production Center for the Passport Offices in Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, and Rivers State by the Interior Minister Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, with assistance from the Deputy Governor of Rivers State, was the event’s main focus.
“The region has now fully transitioned to the upgraded ePassport regime, joining the South East, South West, and locations in the United States and UK with the roll-out and commissioning of the Centre”
The event was attended by top government functionaries of the State, Federal agencies including representatives of the military, security and response agencies in the State.
