• Dismisses scarcity of document, says claim plot to extort applicants
Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, has accused corrupt officials of sabotaging efforts at sanitising application and issuance of passports in the country.
Inaugurating the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Passport Front Office in Oyo Town, Oyo State, the minister dismissed claim of shortage of the document, insisting the speculation is spearheaded by a few corrupt officials of the organization to extort applicants.
He said inauguration of the new facility would decongest the Ibadan centre.
Aregbesola said: “One of the challenges facing NIS as regards passport application are the few corrupt officials of the Service, who are undermining efforts at sanitising the process.
“These unscrupulous people are making the situation difficult by the day. If people did not patronise them, they would not exist.
“They are the ones spreading the rumour that there are no booklets to extort applicants.
“We did not have a shortage of booklets at any given time. We have enough booklets to meet the needs of the people.
“There are more than enough booklets in our production schedule.”
He said one of the problems besetting NIS was the dearth of offices to enrol and capture applicants.
