The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has stated that the new conditions introduced as prerequisites for obtaining or renewing international passports were instituted to curb the acquisition of Nigerian passports by non-citizens.
The Minister stated this in Abuja while responding to queries from the press, according to a statement on Wednesday from his media aide, Babatunde Alao.
While emphasizing that the passport is a security document exclusive to Nigerian citizens, the Minister said the new conditions would impede non-Nigerians from acquiring the passport, revealing that foreigners have exploited the inefficiencies of the previous system.
Meanwhile, the Minister acknowledged challenges faced by new passport applicants, assuring the public of an enhanced process in the coming weeks.
The new conditions, including the provision of a citizenship certificate, date of birth certificate and the National Identification Number (NIN), have become critical in verifying an applicant’s true citizenship.
Tunji-Ojo emphasized that the reform was aimed at simplifying the passport acquisition process for Nigerians through facilitating speedy online application, production, and passport collection.
“We have to introduce this new system to stop those non-Nigerians carrying Nigerian passports.
“Contrary to reports, the new process is working very effectively and the hiccups recorded are only four per cent, which is a significant improvement for a system that is newly introduced and I assure you that in the next one or two weeks we will have a near perfect system.
“We have to improve our process of obtaining passports because passport is a security document. This new system has improved accessibility, transparency and efficiency,” the Minister stated.
