The sack of eight officers of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) over extortion has continued to attract accolades to the Comptroller-General of the Nigerian Immigration Service (CGIS), Mr Idris Jere, for upholding justice.
Some travellers and passport holders who commended the CGIS on the punitive meted out to the erring members of NIS told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Monday that it had long been expected.
NAN reports that on Nov. 4, a statement signed by Mr Kenneth Kure, a Chief Superintendent of Immigration and in the Public Relations Unit of the NIS, broke the news announcing sack of the eight personnel.
The statement also stated that 100 personnel attached to the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) were redeployed .
It said also that 18 other personnel had been sanctioned for various offences ranging from gross misconduct, employment racketeering and other forms of corrupt practices.
The report said that the sack and the redeployment followed the approval granted by the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB)
The CDCFIB noted that “the conducts of the personnel have remained grossly unbecoming and unacceptable as members of the Service.
NAN reports that in October, a traveller, with the Twitter handle @derby__, narrated her ugly experience at the airport in Lagos, accusing some officials of the agency of alleged extortion and bribery.
The traveller who displayed the picture of one of the accused in her tweets, said the officers lied to her that because she was not yet 40 years’ old, she would not be allowed into the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The lady who alleged to have parted with some amount of money as bribe then advised intending young travellers to be wary of unscrupulous people at the airport.
A traveller, Mr Anthony Nworah, said that NIS should have introduced such punitive measures before the incidence that led to the sack of some of its personnel.
According to Nworah , some personnel always outsmart policies to ensure passports are procured by potential seekers at unofficial rates.
“However, I commend Jere for being upright and for ensuring that the culprits paid the price for greed”, he said.
A banker, Mr Akehinde Bello, who works with one of the new generation banks, decried how his international passport was not released to him after he had paid the approved amount.
Bello while commending CGIS Jere said that there was the need for the management of NIS to fish out other bad eggs within the system.
Also, Mrs Ada Agbomoagan, a mother of two, whose son is studying in the United States applauded the CIGS’ move said that she was the happiest on hearing the news.
She said, “My daughter always travels with extra cash.
“Some officers see immigration work as a business rather than service to their fatherland” she said.
Another passport seeker , Mr Ganiyu Ero, urged NIS to release always information that would guide passport seekers from making mistakes that NIS officers could capitalise on while providing services for them. (NAN)
