Nigeria’s Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has revealed how a Ugandan woman was caught at Lagos Airport after paying $1,000 to illegally obtain a Nigerian international passport. The minister disclosed this shocking case during the Ministry of Interior’s mid-tenure performance retreat in Abuja, stressing that it reflects the depth of corruption that once plagued the nation’s passport system.
He explained that fraudulent practices thrived because of weak oversight and the excessive powers once held by Passport Control Officers (PCOs). “Some PCOs had so much power, they could delay or withhold approvals until they were ‘settled’. That abuse of power ends now,” Tunji-Ojo declared. He noted that reforms have stripped PCOs of such powers, centralising the approval process to limit human interference.
The minister reaffirmed that Nigeria’s passport must remain a true symbol of national identity, not something to be bought or faked. His remarks come as the Federal Government approved a new passport fee structure effective September 1, 2025, pegging the cost of the 32-page, five-year passport at ₦100,000 and the 64-page, 10-year passport at ₦200,000 for applications within the country.
