FG denies authorizing opening of Passport Offices in Hotels, Banks

The Federal Government through the Ministry of Interior, has denied reports making the rounds that it has authorized the opening of Passport Offices in hotels and banks across the country.

In a statement released this morning, Monday November 7, the Minister of Interior, noted: “The attention of the Office of the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has been drawn to news publications with the above subject matter, where an unnamed individual was said to have represented the Minister and made comments that are not in consonance with the policy drive of the Ministry, which supervises the Nigeria Immigration Service. To be clear, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, DID NOT directly or indirectly state that passport front offices will be opened in Hotels or Banks”.

The statement obtained by Fresh Angle International from the verified twitter handle of the Ministry of Interior, added: “The Ministry is working with the Nigerian Immigration Service under the able leadership of CG Isah Jere, to reform the passport process by boosting the operations of the existing passport offices across the Nation and in Diaspora to deliver improved passport experience for Nigerians with the ultimate goal of eliminating corruption and incentivizing productivity.

“This passport reform has recorded several bold and successful initiatives not least of which include; 1. the elimination of cash payment for any passport service at ALL Passport Centers, 2. the introduction of a digital Appointment Management System (AMS) allowing Nigerians book biometric capture appointments in advance, 3. the introduction of standardized timelines for passport collection (3 weeks for Re-issue , 6 weeks for fresh application) after biometric capture.

“Indeed, this reform is yielding results; so far this year, 1.5 million passports have been produced for Nigerians, dwarfing all previous yearly productions.

“We urge Nigerians to support #passportreform, by applying well in time and avoid using touts”.

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