Insecurity: Buhari urges migrants to submit themselves to e-registration

President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday urged migrants to, within six months, submit themselves to e-registration at the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) headquarters in Abuja.

Buhari said the government had the right to know each migrant, adding that the registration process would further enhance the internal security of the country.

The President, who was represented at the official commissioning of the Migrant e-Registration Centre and Passport Data Processing Centre by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, said the government is serious over the development and that migrants should take advantage of the six months amnesty period to avoid penalty.

Buhari said the Passport Application Processing Centre will provide improved issuance of passports and eliminate touting as well as corruption in line with government’s policy on ease of doing business.

He vowed to support Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) that have programes and projects that will add value to governance and enhance national security.

The president assured the international community of its commitment to promoting the fundamental human rights of migrants.

He said: “I am delighted to witness this occasion of the commissioning of the Migrant e-Registration and Passport Application Processing Centre established by the Nigeria Immigration Service. These centres are significant to our drive for robust internal security and national development.

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“Today’s event reflects government’s deliberate commitment to harnessing accurate data of its citizens and statistics of migrants, especially those who wish to stay beyond 90 days within the shores of Nigeria.

“While the Migrant e-Registration Centre will collate and store data of non-Nigerians within our shore, the Passport Application Processing Centre on the other hand will provide improved issuance of passports.

“The Migrant e-Registration Centre will flag off the e-registration of all migrants in Nigeria to aid internal monitoring and integration. I, therefore, wish to assure the international community that we are committed to promoting the fundamental human rights of migrants. However, we have the responsibility to know who lives among us and what he does.

“It is on this note, therefore, that I am declaring a six-month amnesty period for irregular migrants already in the country to submit themselves to the Nigeria Immigration Service for the purpose of this registration which will be carried out without any payment or penalties.

“This administration has approved a comprehensive passport reform aimed at enhancing the country’s identity management, among other things. Accordingly, in line with our administration’s commitment to the Local Content Act, I have directed that the production of passports be domesticated in Nigeria to build capacity of indigenous firms and enable seamless service delivery. This must be done with care so that the process is not interrupted.”

Buhari said further : “I am happy to note the progress being made in the successful integration of data between the Nigeria Immigration Service and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), particularly as it was done in the spirit of achieving one data for each Nigerian. This integration of data, we hope, will be achieved in the registration of migrants. Other Ministries, Departments and Agencies are therefore enjoined to emulate this effective collaboration as a way forward towards nation building.

“I am enjoining all migrants staying in Nigeria whether regularly or otherwise to take advantage of the amnesty window to register with the Nigeria Immigration Service. While urging Nigerians to embrace the new passport reforms, I task the Nigeria Immigration Service to replicate the Passport Application Processing Centres nationwide so as to entrench transparency and elimination of corruption in the system.”

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Barrister Georgina Ehuriah, described the service as a major stakeholder in the Federal Government’s policy of ease of doing business that has liberalised the process and service delivery to encourage genuine businesses to thrive and investors to be wooed into the country.

She said the e-registration will enhance national security and will assist in building capacity to identify foreigners.

The Comptroller General of NIS, Muhammad Babandede, said there is the need to have good documentation of all foreigners in Nigeria.

Babandede warned officers not to charge any fee from anyone during that e-registration.