A total of 7,390 Nigerians were sent back to the country from different countries overseas, in the year 2013, Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Mr David Parradang revealed on Thursday.
Speaking at the Immigration headquarters in Abuja on Thursday while answering questions from journalists, Parradang stated that the repatriations were conducted because many Nigerians abroad struggled to make ends meet while others were stuck in conflict-ravaged countries.
He also disclosed that the immigration service blocked the travel plans of 106,739 Nigerians who were in search of greener pastures in 2013, due to the possibility of facing the very problems for which the deportations occurred. In similar vein, 150, 840 foreigners who fell short of the requirements for admittance were denied entry into the country.
Speaking on activities of the service, he said a robust mechanism for internal monitoring and control of immigrants was introduced in the same year under review, in order to correctly account for the presence and activities of immigrants.
“We have introduced a new Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card (CERPAC), which has enhanced security features to help us track all foreigners who move in and out of the country”, he said, adding that every foreigner who wants to be in the country must possess the card.
He explained that the service also introduced a special border patrol corps, which will help bolster security around the nation’s notoriously porous borders. The patrol corps comprises 1000 immigration officers who have been specially trained and equipped with the right regimentation and technology for efficient border policing.
“The service has continued to receive cooperation from security agencies, including the Military, in our effort to get rid of illegal immigrants who are security risks to the country.
“We need to secure our borders and we are working to achieve it. We have the ideas and the desire, we know what to do and we are currently focusing on that. Although 37 officers lost their lives due to activities of insurgents in various parts of the country, the service would continue to work closely with other agencies to end the attacks”.
He assured that the service would continue its zero tolerance for corruption, and officers found culpable would be summarily dismissed for service. He also denied reports of 100 per cent increase in passport fees, saying the service only increased the number of pages on the passport booklet to suit frequent travellers.
