The Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Mrs.Caroline Adepoju has ordered investigation on allegations of passport racketeering against personnel of the service in the South East.
This was contained in press statement by the Service Public Relations Officer, Deputy Comptroller of Immigration Adedotun Aridegbe in Abuja and sent to Pacesetter.
Recall that Dream 92.5 FM in an anti- corruption programme Korokoro Eye broadcast on the 25th of August and 1st of September 2023, investigated the complaints of extortion and corruption by applicants for the Nigerian International passport in Enugu.
Many of the applicants complained that they were charged fees higher than the approved government rates for obtaining the passport by Immigration officers and failure to comply means the applicant will keep coming back to Immigration passport office until he or she is lucky to get their biometrics captured.
More so, officials give preferential treatment to applicants filling forms in passport offices than online, and will pay little or no attention to online applications.
Dream FM investigations showed that some staff of NIS Enugu office were complicit in the acts of corruption as applicants are given the option to pay more so that the officers can fast-track the process.
The report is one in the series on investigative reports on corruption by Dream FM supported by Wadata Media and Advocacy Centre funded by MacArthur Foundation.