RismadarVoice Reporters
January 20, 2026
The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, on Tuesday paid an unannounced visit to the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) passport office in Gwagwalada, Abuja, where he criticized delays in passport processing and warned applicants against making payments outside approved fees.
During the visit, the Minister inspected operations at the VIP and Children section of the passport office and engaged immigration officials, applicants, querying why many applicants were still waiting long after the office was expected to commence daily operations.
Tunji-Ojo also sought feedback from applicants, cautioned them against paying additional fee for passport services, insisting that Nigerians had already paid the full official charges.
“I don’t want to hear that you are collecting money for diesel or paper,” the Minister said.
He questioned immigration officials on the pace of enrolment and biometric capturing, stressing that the process should take only a few minutes per applicant.
“How long does it take to do an enrolment? Three minutes. So three times seven, that is twenty-one minutes,” he said.
Immigration officers admitted that although the office was scheduled to open at 8:00a.m., operations began later, after power generating system was switched on at about 9:00a.m.
“We are supposed to open by eight,” an official said, explaining that power supply was activated after applicants had already arrived.
The Minister criticized the practice of completing enrolment for all applicants before commencing biometric capturing, insisting that both processes should be carried out simultaneously to reduce waiting time.
“It doesn’t make sense to me. People are there waiting. Some of these people still need to go to work. Some of these people have other things to do,” Tunji-Ojo said.
“Why must you wait until you enrol everybody before capturing?”
Describing the situation as unacceptable, the Minister stressed that delays undermined effective service delivery.
Tunji-Ojo also faulted the under-utilization of the VIP and Children section of the office, noting that applicants waiting in other sections could have been redirected to ease congestion.
“It will not cost you anything if you use this place for them,” he said.
The Minister reiterated that passport offices must prioritize efficiency, fairness, service to the public.
