Posted by By Kayode Ogunbunmi on
POSSIBLY unaware that their travel documents has been rendered invalid, hundreds of Nigerians might still be carrying passports.....
POSSIBLY unaware that their travel documents has been rendered invalid, hundreds of Nigerians might still be carrying passports that the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has cancelled.
Recently, some such unlucky Nigerians have had their foreign trips terminated when immigration officials in those countries seized their 'fake' passports and promptly deported them.
Reports said some staff of a multinational oil company got some of the invalidated passports and they, including their family were detained, refused entry into Netherlands and later deported to Nigeria.
The Public Relations Officer for the NIS, Ekpedeme King, confirmed that some passports had been cancelled and that the service has circulated the list of the cancelled passports to foreign governments. He however denied taking Nigerians for granted, saying the list is also online on the service's website.
Listed on the website, as passports cancelled, effective from 2005, is a list that is 69 long. "This list will be updated regularly," the service promises.
King said the cancellation exercise is a continuous one. He however listed reasons why the NIS cancels passports, including the need to render a batch of stolen passports invalid.
"The passport is a vital document and it should not pass through the hand of third parties," he said, "as it might be tampered with by them."
"The Nigerian standard passport is not issued by proxy. All applicants must appear in person before the passport control officer so that their image is recorded on our machine. If you don't, then you are running the risk of procuring bad passports."
He said there are cases of stolen passports booklets, which are used by unscrupulous immigration officers. Any passport produced from these booklets is not genuine.
King said, although the service sent the list to foreign immigration agencies, the list is also posted on its website.
"We are telling Nigerians that we don't issue passports by proxy. So, if you get your passport by proxy, you are running the risk of holding a dud passport," he said.
Below is a list of the cancelled passports:
A1922343-
A2878138A-A2878189A
A4103151-A4103650
A4081151-A4081650
A4072651-A4073150
A4071651-A4072150
A4071151-A4071650
A4067151-A4067650
A3995151-A3995650
A3296690A-A3297189A
A3269690A-A3270189A
A3268690A-A3269189A
A3268190A-A3268689A
A3267690A-A3268189A
A3267190A-A3267689A
A3266690A-A3267189A
A3266190A-A3266689A
A3265690A-A3266189A
A3265190A-A3265689A
A3264690A-A3265689A
A2986290A-A2986689A
A2979190A-A2979689A
A2975190A-A2975689A
A2971190A-A2971689A
A2970690A-A2971189A
A2966190A-A2966689A
A2965690A-A2966189A
A2957190A-A2957689A
A2953690A-A2954189A
A2952190A-A2952689A
A2941190A-A2941689A
A2938690A-A2939189A
A2935190A-A2935689A
A2934690A-A2935189A
A2934190A-A2934689A
A2928190A-A2928689A
A2919190A-A2919689A
A2914690A-A2915189A
A2910190A-A2910689A
A2905190A-A2905689A
A2901690A-A2902189A
A2901190A-A2901689A
A2886690A-A2887189A
A2882190A-A2882689A
A2877690A-A2878136A
A2873190A-A2873689A
A3102190-A3102689
A3070190-A3070689
A3069690-A3070189
A3103190-A3103689
A3066690-A3067189
A3062690-A3063189
A2123190-A2123689
A2120190-A2120689
A2119690-A2120189
A2116651-A2117150
A2116151-A2116650
A2115151-A2115650
A2113151-A2113650
A2111651-A2112150
A2110151-A2110650
A2105651-A2106150
A2103651-A2104150
A2102151-A2102650
A1931651-A1932150
A1927151-A1927650
A1220501-A1221000
A1215001-A1215500
A1212001-A1212500