Investigation: How NIS officials, touts connive to fleece passport applicants

 

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For weeks, Daily Trust on Sunday traversed Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Passport Offices in Lagos and Oyo States, secretly filming and observing corrupt officials who are in the habit of extorting Nigerians applying for passports. At least, four applicants went through the compromised process aided by the officials. In the end, the well-coordinated chain of corruption and tactics of the officials and their agents were laid bare.

Michael, in his 20s, was ecstatic having secured an admission to SRH Berlin University of Applied Sciences, for his post graduate programme. The young lad requires an international passport before he heads for Germany.

Basking in the euphoria of the admission, he breezed into the Ikoyi passport office of the Nigeria Immigration Office (NIS) on a July morning for an application.

“I paid N26,000 application charges online, did some print-outs and I was given a file for the manual completion of the process,” he said.

He was able to complete the application seamlessly and did his capturing on July 5, 2021 with the assurance that he would be issued the fresh passport in six weeks’ time, according to the timeline of the federal government.

However, Michael’s passport has not been produced more than ten weeks down the line, and sadly, he has been unable to meet up with the deadline. He deferred the admission.

“Of course, I want to use it to travel. I can’t commence Visa application without a passport.

“I have deferred my school admission because of it (delayed passport issuance) till next April,” he let out his frustration.

Michael’s only ‘sin’ was to toe the legitimate path of passport application. “I didn’t bribe anybody, I paid just N27,000 to complete the application process,” he said in an interaction with our reporter.

While his waiting game continues, thousands of applicants have walked into the Ikoyi passport office and secured their passports within 24 hours, two days or a week, depending on who you know or how fat your pocket is, in order to pay the ‘right price’. Welcome to the Ikoyi Passport office of corruption, extortion and open trade on ‘passport business’.  

Inside notorious Ikoyi passport office

It was 6:58am on Tuesday, July 27, 2021 and the venue was the Ikoyi Passport office, located at Alagbon Road, Ikoyi. The gate was thrown open to the officials resuming duty, but applicants were sighted hanging around the environment. Applicants are only allowed in at 8 am when the business of the day starts.

Touts disguising as photographers and business centres operators mill around, seeking attention and patronage of the applicants. They are known faces within the passport office and serve as middlemen between applicants of the international passports and the corrupt officials.

“Wait and get a passport photograph, two minutes’ passport,” one of them said as he approached this reporter, standing by the roadside. “Or do you want to apply for an international passport,” he asked, the reporter responded in affirmation.

Drawing him closer, the reporter said to him, “My brother (the fixer with him) needs an international passport urgently. How can you be of help?” He expressed his readiness to link the reporter with an officer who would fast-track the process.

“But the earliest you can get it is three to six weeks,” he said emphatically.

“We are ready to pay any amount provided we will get it in one week,” the reporter insisted.

According to the touts, the passport of 32 pages would cost N45,000, while 64 pages go for N90,000.

Another tout identified as Afo Olaoluwa, a business centre operator, offered to facilitate issuance of the passport within three weeks.

At exactly 8am, all the applicants were asked to form three queues, the fresh applicants, those scheduled for data capturing and those whose passports are ready for pick-ups. The reporter and his fixer joined the line and filed into the premises.

Like a marketplace, Ikoyi Passport Office premises is full of hustling and bustling. Apart from the thousands of applicants wandering around, and the petty traders, corrupt officials seeking attention or paving ways for their clients, populate the environment. This, sometimes, makes the environment chaotic.         

This reporter observed that at least 6 out of 10 NIS officers sighted within the premises, clutched application files of his or her clients. Many abandoned their duty posts to lobby for a fast-track process for their clients who after making “the right payment” were asked to go to sleep. Your presence is only required for data capturing and possibly the pick-up.  

Application process

On the NIS website, it was stated that an applicant must register online.  A 32-page 5-year standard passport goes for N25,000; 64-page 5-year standard passport goes for N35,000. On the other hand, the 64-page 10- year standard passport for adults (18 years and above) goes for N70,000; while the 32 page 5-year official passport goes for N15,000.

It further explained that the applicant will print out the receipt and some other forms like the indemnity form and guarantor’s forms that will be accessible to him after payment.

The applicant according to the NIS is expected to fill those forms and attach photocopies of state of origin certificate, birth certificate and other requirements, before taking it to any chosen passport office at the point of registration for verification and capturing.

However, a visit to the Ikoyi passport office showed that one out of 100 applicants passed through this process. Investigation also revealed that even when some of the applicants registered online, they are always frustrated to compromise the process. Some applicants who began the process themselves later sought the help of a corrupt officer that would finish the process because of the coordinated corruption approach.

At the Ikoyi office, there are two files, white and yellow. Insiders said white files are being used by those who compromised the legitimate process, while those who follow the NIS guidelines are handed yellow files with NIS boldly written on.  

An encounter with officer Tingir

The search for a ‘fast track process’ brought this reporter in contact with Aondoseer Tingir, an Immigration Inspector. He was seen gallivanting within the premises in a manner that gave him out as seeking clients among a pool of applicants.

This reporter approached him and asked if he could facilitate an urgent issuance of a fresh passport in a matter of three days. Tingir bluntly said he was up to the task.

Are you sure we can get it before Friday? this reporter asked, to elicit proper assurance.

“I go deliver for you,” Tingir, fully clad in his uniform, said.

In Pidgin English, Tingir said, “Me I dey work here, ask about the name Tingir. If you wan come, ask anybody about me.

“I dey here for more than seven years; I know the job. I go deliver for you, this work no be say contact, never to deliver, make I give you what you want so you fit bring another person come. Bring the file, na me go run the file.”

Tingir linked the reporter up with Mr Gabriel who is his middleman, a tout and one of business centre operators, for payment,  online registration and file arrangement. He also demanded extra N10,000 after the payment of N45,000 to the middleman, to which the reporter agreed to pay.

“The work dey move normal like before. I go do am for you, If I no fit do am, I go tell you say I no go do am, but the work dey move normal. If you pay the N10,000 and you capture, I will carry the file go production room and they fit do am this night. Friday, you go collect am.

“Just pray make the NIN no have issue, me I go try for you,” he boasted.

Having sealed an ‘agreement,’ Tingir beckoned on one of the errand boys standing at the entrance of the immigration office and told him to take this reporter to Mr Gabriel’s office.

Without saying a single word, the young man in his 20s, led this reporter and the fixer to one of the shops strategically located around the passport office.  

Fake birth certificates, state of origin, guarantor, others

Mr Gabriel is not alone in the illicit business. His shop like other lock up shops is tucked within an adjoined structure being used by petty traders and cafe operators.

At the shop, there are cubicles with sets of computers manned by about five young men and women who are his staffers.

The workers – Sam, Steve, Funmi, Olamide, Dammy were responsible for the online registration and coupling of files. They also provide fake documents if the applicant does not possess them. The fake documents like birth certificate, state of origin and guarantor attract at least N3,000 depending on your bargaining prowess.

Mr Gabriel told this reporter that 32 pages of the passport costs N45, 000 as against the N25,000 official price.

He also charged N2,000 to provide the lacking documents. This reporter, through the fixer, paid cash of N47,000 being the application and fake documents charges.

After about 30 minutes, the applicant (the fixer) was presented with an Ifo LG, Ogun State, origin certificate alongside a fake birth certificate. All these were attached to the forms printed online and filled by one of the girls working at the centre.

On the guarantor’s form, the agent filled in a name, Ogunyemi Oritsejemiyotan, attached photocopies of her passport-size photograph and National Identification Number to the form.

While the registration was on, the investigative reporter observed how NIS officers in mufti intermittently came into the shop to check if their clients’ files had been dispensed with. While a number of them came in with the new clients, others inquired if the agents have independent clients for them.

After about 1 hour, 45minutes at the shop, the online registration process and arrangement of the file, for verification purposes, was completed.

“Go and give the file to him (referring to Tingir). He is waiting for you at the gate,” Mr Gabriel said.  

Skewed verification, coordinated corruption among officers

Although the verification process is expected to be the point where fake documents ought to be detected and applicants without the necessary documents are sent back, due to the coordinated chain of corruption in the Ikoyi passport office, officers at the verification section quickly pass the file once money exchanges hands.

Starting from NIN, the payment slip, the birth certificates, guarantor’s form and the state of origin, all documents are expected to be verified by some officers.

It is expected that the applicant will present the original documents so as to confirm if he/she truly possesses the documents presented at the point of registration.

The reporter and applicant handed over the file to officer Tingir to continue with the verification process. He immediately demanded the extra N10,000 which the reporter agreed to pay, but the reporter insisted he would pay upon completion of the verification and data capturing of his applicant. Tingir agreed, and headed for the verification unit.

A mild drama, however, ensued at the unit. Tingir met a brick-wall as he was not ready to part with any amount to allow his colleagues pass the file.

While waiting for him outside the office, Tingir stormed out in anger.

“They are asking me for money before they will verify the file,” he retorted. “How much?” the reporter inquired. He said “N5,000.”

Amid the conversation, another corrupt officer, Idehen M, was passing. Tingir dragged him and said “Abeg, help me verify this (pointing at the reporter and the applicant).” Idehen requested for N5,000, but this reporter offered him N2,000. He accepted the cash discreetly and got the verification done in an hour.

Capturing room as bottleneck

Data capturing is the last stage of the application process and the capturing room has been identified as a bottleneck by several applicants who spoke with this reporter.

Frustration was visibly written on the faces of about hundreds of applicants endlessly waiting in the queue at the Long Room.

“I have spent more than six hours on this queue today and it seems not to be moving,” a young lady expressed anger.

Ironically, many applicants who came in through the corrupt officials or “Ogas at the top”, had unfettered access in and out of the capturing room.

At about 2pm same day, the application process was completed. Tingir demanded for his N10,000, to which the reporter made a transfer to him immediately.

Tingir confirmed receipt of the transfer alert. He told this reporter to come alongside the applicant for the pick-up on Thursday.

“I go carry the file go production room this night, dem go print the passport. Call me tomorrow, if it’s ready, I go tell you make you come and collect am,” he promised.  

On Wednesday, a call was put through to him, asking if the passport was ready for collection. He, however, asked the reporter and the applicant to come for the collection on Thursday “because it was late already.”

Applicant secures passport at Ikoyi office in 48 hours

Due to electricity challenge, there was about five hours delay on Thursday when the reporter alongside the applicant went to the Ikoyi office for passport collection.

The Production Room, where a passport is printed, for onward collection, was characterized with power play among the senior and junior immigration officers.

For hours, this reporter observed how NIS officials, agents and touts were lurking around the Production Room, in an attempt to confirm if their clients’ passports had been produced.

Frustrated by the continued delay, this reporter approached Tingir, “Are you sure we will get this passport today?”

He responded “Don’t worry now, you must collect it today.”

Few minutes later, about five newly printed passports were taken to the Passport Collection Room, and one of them bore the names of the applicant paid for by this reporter.

Within 48 hours, this reporter secured a passport.

Tingir gloated over his “feat”.

“This thing I did for you was not easy. You can only get this done at the Express Centre, Abuja. It will cost you N100,000 or N150,000,” he said.

The corrupt officer also demanded a parting gift from this reporter; N2,000 cash was handed over to him.

To this reporter’s