The Nigeria High Commission in the United Kingdom has reduced its charge for the ongoing passport intervention from £70 to £20 following protests and scrutiny over the additional fee.
The high commission reduced the fee to £20 on Wednesday, but
did not notify applicants of the change displayed on its website.
TheCable reported how the high commission bypassed a
previous memo issued by late President Muhammadu Buhari during a similar
intervention under his administration. The memo directed Nigerian diplomatic
missions not to charge more than £20 for making their premises available for
the exercise.
Upon implementation during Monday’s exercise, the high
commission imposed an extra £70 for admin without approval from the ministry of
foreign affairs, and £150 for lost passports.
Nigerians in the UK desperate to secure quick passport
renewals booked appointments through the high commission’s portal, which at the
time of TheCable’s report, still displayed the fee on its website.
Officials with knowledge of the payments told TheCable that
the high commission collected fees from about 3,000 applicants despite having
the capacity to accommodate fewer than 300 people per day. TheCable archived
the previously displayed fees here.
The reduced passport intervention fee still conflicts with
the separate £20 administrative charge stipulated by the Buhari administration.
Officials involved told TheCable that the Nigerian high
commission demanded an additional payment to facilitate the process so as to
“generate revenue”.
Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, minister of interior, said he was
concerned about the inconvenience regarding the passport intervention exercise.
Tunji-Ojo also denied the requirement of administrative fees
as allegedly demanded by officials and said consultations were ongoing with the
ministry of foreign affairs to ensure that inconveniences do not persist any
longer.
On Tuesday, the high commission notified citizens that the
biometric capturing exercise had been suspended in London.
Applicants were directed to alternative centres to continue
with their appointments.
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