Babandede’s deadline is faulty

Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service [NIS] Mohammed Babandede said last week that with effect from January 1, 2018 citizens must have a national identity number (NIN) before they can renew or be issued with new passports. He said at the Presidential Villa, Abuja that the decision was in line with the country’s policy […]

Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service [NIS] Mohammed Babandede said last week that with effect from January 1, 2018 citizens must have a national identity number (NIN) before they can renew or be issued with new passports. He said at the Presidential Villa, Abuja that the decision was in line with the country’s policy of harmonizing the data of all its citizens. Babandede said, “From 1st January 2018 anybody who is going to apply for the Nigerian passport, whether renewal or fresh, must first have a national identity number. We want to ease business for Nigerians. No need for you to go and have your biometric captured by NIM-C and then you come and capture again with Nigeria Immigration. Once you give us your NIM-C number we will collect the biometric from NIM-C and produce your passport.”

NIS’ boss also said, “Any foreigner, non-Nigerian resident in Nigeria will not get his permit renewed until he has a NIM-C number. To achieve this, NIM-C and passport numbers will be harmonized and we are committed to allow NIM-C in Immigration. NIM-C staff can work in our passport offices. So when you come to get the passport you can also get the national identity card.” It is no surprise that his statement, which came like a bolt from the blue, has caused panic among Nigerians, most of whom do not have the NIN.  

It is true that the process of passport renewal and issuance will be hastened if NIS will rely on information already captured by NIM-C and a NIN is issued. The long process of data presentation and thumb printing at the Immigration Office and other agencies will be eradicated, thereby aiding smooth and easy execution of business.  However, setting a deadline of January 2018, which is about five months away for citizens to tender NIN before they can obtain or renew their passports is totally unreasonable. This is because though this country has been trying for more than 40 years to ensure that all citizens get a national ID card, this has not yet materialised. The process first started with the National Civic Registration office, which a few years ago was replaced by the National Identity Management Commission with an expanded mandate. Then President Goodluck Jonathan and a few other VIPs were seen on television collecting their NINs, but that was as far as it went. Issuance of the new ID was soon suspended. To therefore hinge the issuance of passports on presentation of that number is callous, to say the least.  

NIS and Babandede should not be overzealous on this issue. Many other agencies will have their work made easier if Nigerians have NINs but they have not issued deadlines or made it a pre-condition for dispensing their services because of the reality of the situation. Only recently, there were reports that NIS was facing a scarcity of passport booklets. It now looks like they are trying to hide behind lack of NINs not to issue passports.

We urge the federal government to put pressure on NIM-C to deliver on the long-promised issuance of NINs to Nigerians, many of whom have already registered for them. Only last week, the commission which recently commenced fresh registration of citizens, said it hopes to capture 28 million Nigerians by the end of 2017. Why engage in a fresh exercise when those who were registered about four years ago are yet to receive the numbers? NIM-C’s Director General Mr Aliyu Aziz, who spoke on the fresh registration exercise in Lagos last Saturday, said anyone without the NIN issued by the commission runs the risk of being regarded as a non-citizen. This cannot possibly be done unless and until most citizens are issued with their identity numbers. Rather than issuing empty threats, NIM-C and the government should better get their act together on this exercise. NIS too should abandon its so-called January 2018 deadline and continue to issue and renew passports until NIM-C does its work.