The Federal Government is planning a far-reaching reforms of the Nigerian Police, Daily Sun learnt yesterday.
Also the government is planning to domesticate the production of International Passports, with the possibility of increasing the fee.
Daily Sun gathered that a draft of the shape and size of the police reforms will be tabled before the Federal Executive Council (FEC) by the Minister of Interior, General Abdurahman Dambazzau, between now and January 2018 for approval.
A top official of government, who revealed the plans, said the Minister of Interior was working on getting a date for the submission of the draft of the police reforms to FEC.
He explained that Dambazzau will secure a date from the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, for the submission of the memo to FEC.
He said the Federal Government was determined to improve national security and wants to reform the police, in a manner that it could cope with the current security challenges.
Apart from police, the source stated that a number of innovative measures aimed at border control, better policing of the citizens are about to be reeled out by the Ministry of Interior.
On passports, the government official, who does not want his name mentioned, disclosed that a tripartite committee is currently meeting to fashion out the possibility of printing passports in the country.
He said the discussion was being handled by the representatives of Immigration and the Nigerian Printing and Minting Company.
Said he: “Just recently, the minister called the Comptroller-General of Immigrations and asked whether it was not possible to produce passports locally. He told the CG that the company in charge has been producing passports in Maylasia and Singapore since 2007 and that it is no longer cost-effective or safe to keep doing that. By doing that they are exposing Nigerian data to foreign sources.
“The minister has directed that the Immigrations should partner with the minting company and they are already talking.”
The source further stated that the minister, while giving the Directive, told the Immigration and the Mint that if he had his way, his first step would be to stop the contract for the production of Passport booklets but the fear that it would lead to scarcity of booklets and impose hardship on Nigerians informed the gradual process.
Besides the local production of Passports, the Ministry of Interior is also said to be considering fast tract centres, where passports could be secured the same day on payment of a fee.
“On the directive of the minister, the Immigration is working on a fast tract centre, whereby you can get the Passport the same day if you are ready to pay extra,” a source said.
He said the government may consider increasing Passport fees, contending that the cost of producing the Passports was high.
Meanwhile, the source said the Federal Government had concluded arrangements to commence aerial patrols of the borders with the revival of Immigration Air wing.
The plan, he said, was aimed at controlling the influx of herdsmen, illegal immigrants and smugglers.
“The Immigrations has three aircraft. There is one that is almost brand new in that it has few number of flight hours. The Ministry of Interior has decided to revive all that to bring them back in shape. Very soon, we will have aerial patrols at our borders,” another government source said.
|Sun
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