Human rights advocate, Mr. Victor Ojei has urged Nigeria Immigration Service Comptroller General, Kemi Nandap to immediately halt the unlawful charges in Delta State after residents of the state have complained repeatedly about the arbitrary charges made by officers of the Delta State Command, Nigeria Immigration Service, Asaba.
A copy of Ojei’s petition, titled “Petition against corruption practices at the Delta State Command of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Asaba, Delta State was made available to the journalists on Wednesday in Asaba, the Delta State capital.
Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, the Federal Minister of Interior, was the recipient of the petition and copied the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The petition reads, “We write to formally bring to your attention the ongoing and deeply entrenched corrupt practices at the Delta State Command of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Asaba. Our findings, based on a recent investigative operation, reveal that officers at this command extort passport applicants through illegal fees and arbitrary charges beyond the official payments prescribed by the Ministry of Interior. Applicants at the Delta State Command are coerced into paying additional fees that are not sanctioned by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).
“After making the official payment for passport processing, they are compelled to pay a so-called “commitment fee” of N12,000, purportedly to cover operational costs, including poor power supply. Applicants requiring expedited service are forced to pay an additional N40,000 for express service. Previously, the charge for this was N15,000, then increased to N20,000, and later hiked to N40,000 during the December 2024 peak season when the demand for 10-year passports surged.
“Officers at the Delta Command allegedly create artificial scarcity of the 66-page, 10-year validity passport booklet, misleading applicants into believing that the booklet is unavailable. This tactic is employed to extract higher payments from desperate applicants, even though the Headquarters in Abuja has supplied sufficient booklets.
“Our investigation uncovered the involvement of unauthorized “Super Agents” who collect N50,000 per applicant, further complicating and commercializing the passport issuance process. Applicants who refuse to comply with these extortionists’ demands, deliberate delays in their passport processing. Their applications are either stalled indefinitely or given the lowest priority.”
He bemoaned that these corrupt practices not only violate the Minister of Interior’s directive that applicants should not pay any additional fees beyond the official payment but also undermine public confidence in the Nigeria Immigration Service.
Ojei, who is the lead activist of Young Nigerian Rights Organisation, said the commercialisation of passport issuance disproportionately affects law-abiding citizens, while rewarding corrupt officers who continue to exploit Nigerians for personal gain, thus demanding immediate investigation and disciplinary actions.
“We call for a thorough investigation into these corrupt activities, particularly the role of the Passport Controlling Officer in Delta State, and appropriate disciplinary measures against any officer found culpable.
“The illegal N12,000 ‘commitment fee’ and the N40,000 express processing fee should be abolished immediately, with clear public communication to ensure applicants are aware of their rights”, he added.
When contacted, the Public Relations Officer, NIS, Delta State Command, Akpom-Nwanolue Ekwutos said, “I don’t have any comment on this, the authority is already handling the matter.”
