Passport Reform, Not Marginalisation: The Truth Behind Enugu NIS Production Claims
Recent reports alleging that the Honourable Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji Ojo, has disqualified South East states from international passport printing and ordered the shutdown of the Nigeria Immigration Service passport production centre in Enugu have generated widespread anxiety and speculation across the region. However, a closer examination of the facts shows that these claims are misleading and largely driven by misinterpretation of an ongoing nationwide reform within the Nigeria Immigration Service rather than any deliberate act of exclusion or marginalisation.
The situation being portrayed as a shutdown is, in reality, part of a phased migration to a centralised passport production system introduced by the NIS in 2024. This reform is being implemented across all zones in the country as well as Nigerian foreign missions, with the aim of improving efficiency, strengthening security, eliminating bottlenecks and standardising passport production. Under this framework, enrolment of applicants continues at designated offices nationwide, while passport production is gradually being moved to highly secured central hubs equipped with modern technology. This process is not targeted at any region and does not deprive any Nigerian of access to passport services.
The developments at the Enugu zonal office must therefore be understood within the context of this broader modernisation effort. Similar adjustments have either taken place or are planned in other parts of the country as the service transitions from decentralised production centres to a more efficient and transparent system. Passport application and enrolment services in the South East remain functional, and applicants are still able to access services through the structures provided under the new framework. What is changing is the operational model, not the rights or entitlements of citizens.
Nevertheless, the tension surrounding the issue underscores the importance of timely and clear public communication. In a country where concerns about regional balance are deeply rooted, administrative reforms must be properly explained to prevent misunderstanding. The absence of immediate clarification created a vacuum that allowed speculation and fear to spread, despite the absence of any official policy to exclude the South East from passport services.
There are also strong indications that the narrative has been deliberately amplified by political actors intent on stirring ethnic sentiment and institutional distrust for personal or political gain. By presenting a technical reform as an act of regional marginalisation, such actors seek to inflame public opinion, undermine confidence in federal institutions and exploit long standing sensitivities for cheap political advantage.
This narrative is also inconsistent with the reform record of the Minister of Interior, whose tenure has focused on digitisation, backlog clearance, transparency and improved service delivery within the Nigeria Immigration Service. The passport reform agenda has been national in scope and inclusive in intent, making claims of regional discrimination both unfounded and irresponsible.
The issue at hand is therefore not marginalisation but reform, and it should be addressed as such. What is required now is a clear and authoritative explanation from the relevant authorities to reassure the public and neutralise misinformation. Allowing administrative restructuring to be recast as ethnic exclusion risks deepening division and distracting from reforms designed to benefit all Nigerians. The facts remain clear that the centralised passport production initiative is a nationwide modernisation effort and not an attempt to deny any region, including the South East, access to essential federal services.
