TheCable

The Nigeria immigration service (NIS) says 4,000 passports are yet to be collected at the Ikoyi passport office in Lagos.

Kayode Eniolorunda, passport control officer (PCO) in Ikoyi, said this on Saturday during an interaction with Crime Reporters Association of Nigeria (CRAN).

He said there were more than 4,000 passport applications in the office without follow-up by their owners.

Eniolorunda made the disclosure while reacting to the directive by Muhammad Babandede, immigration comptroller-general (CG), on passport backlog.

on June 13, Babandede gave passport control officers at home and abroad 48 hours to clear the backlog of passport applications.

Ekpedeme King, the service spokesman, who gave the order in a statement, said the directive followed complaints by passport applicants.

Eniolorunda said many people put up applications to secure Nigeria International Passports without following it up to completion.

“We have complied with the C-G’s order. However, we have between 4,000 and 5,000 applications whose owners never return to complete the processes,” he said.

“We are doing everything possible to ensure that applicants do not spend many hours at our office before they are captured.

“There are also some completed passports which have yet to be collected by their owners.”

On the alleged issuance of fake passports to Nigerians, the PCO blamed individual applicants who patronise touts at the entrance of the office.

Eniolorunda, who expressed sadness over some educated persons being victims of fake passport, advised applicants to always reach the right office before making payment.

He said his operatives arrest suspected touts around the passport office on a daily basis and so warned applicants against their activities.

Eniolorunda commended the media for enlightening the public on the activities of touts around passport offices.