From Our Correspondent
Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, the Minister of Interior, Tuesday, said that the Immigration Service cleared backlogs of 60,000 passports in four days.
TheNewsZenith reports that this is out of over 200,000 pending passport applications nationwide.
Tunji-Ojo announced this when the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Betta Edu, visited him in Abuja.
According to the minister, this followed a ministerial directive that Immigration should clear all pending passport applications within two weeks.
Tunji-Ojo had pledged that he would clean up the passport crisis in the country within a short while.
“When we came on board, the passport crisis was an embarrassment to the country. And we said there is no way it can continue.
“As of this morning, we have cleared a backlog of about 60,000 passports; specifically 59,906 passports.
“On Sept. 6, when I gave the 2-week ultimatum, we had over 200,000 backlogs.
However, we have recorded tremendous progress. And I still maintain my word, those backlogs we must clear,” the minister said.
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The visiting minister, Edu had earlier said she came to seek collaboration with the Interior Ministry to strategise towards reducing human trafficking.
She added that the collaboration would also address other related challenges such poor welfare for veterans, underemployment and poverty reduction.
“Your ministry is in best position to solve issues of human trafficking as you supervise the Nigeria Immigration Service,” Edu said.
Responding, Tunji-Ojo said the ministry welcomes such an initiative as “it is in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda”.
He recalled that the President had directed ministers to see a partnership as an agent of his agenda.
“As such, the interior ministry is fully prepared for any meaningful collaboration. There is a lot of work we must do and we cannot work in silos as the President has directed.
“We are not just working on humanitarian endeavours such as human trafficking, NIS must help us change the story completely,” he said.
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