To become a leader, either as an individual or corporate entity, there are burdens that must be borne; no matter how light or heavy.
The ability to successfully bear these burdens, confers on the individual or corporate body the prize of worthy leadership.
This has been the case of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, (MMIA), Lagos where it has been erroneously seen by some intending passengers, who don’t possess required travel documents and their sponsors.
This set of Nigerians see the service, as the “barrier” that must be pull down by all means for them to reach their “promised land”.
Equally, some travellers who are sometimes extorted by some unscrupulous elements within the airport wrongly ascribed their woes to NIS..
But why is NIS painted in bad colour while diligently discharging the services for which it should be commended for, by those whose futures it has helped to save from getting ruined in Europe, Middle East and Asia where they erroneously believe green pastures abundantly exist? African Business Travel News (ABTN) discovered that the issue of NIS at the Lagos airport is similar to what obtained at the land and sea borders, where Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) performs its statutory core duties of: Collection of Revenue (Import /Excise Duties & other Taxes /Levies) and accounting for same, Anti-Smuggling activities, Security functions, Generating statistics for planning and Budgetary purposes etc.
The NCS is seen by criminals among importers, exporters and agents as the biblical Prince of Persian who stands between them and their “answered prayers”.
Speaking with a group of journalists recently in his office at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport the Nigeria Immigration Service Comptroller Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Command, Comptroller Musa Usman shed light on why activities of diligent operatives of NIS are tagged as “bad market” by illegal travel facilitators/ operators who specialise in taken Nigerian youths, especially young ladies, overseas for forced prostitution and labour,
According to Usman, Immigration Service ( NIS) has never muted the idea of disallowing Nigerian youths from seeking greener pastures outside the shore of the country, but insisted that any Nigerian nursing the idea to travel abroad must have the requirements for them not become liabilities in foreign lands.
Usman who said a lot has been done to ensure that no traveller crosses the nation’s border at the airport without having the right requirements to do so, affirmed that NIS has been become enemies of those who preferred the illegal path.
He however affirmed that because the service is not deterred in its commitments to its core roles. He asserted that NIS under the leadership of Muhammed Babandede has mandated itself to offer travel advisory to many Nigerians youths on why and how they must get the required travel requirements before they go abroad.
He regretted that a lot of Nigerian youths who ignorantly travelled abroad thinking that they were heading to a lands where milk and honey flow endlessly, have had themselves to blame.
He said that since September 5, 2020 when the nation opened two of her airports to scheduled commercial flights, the service at Lagos airport has been able to re-strategise and improved its operations.
“From September 5 till now, that our usual fight of not allowing people who are not qualified to cross our border- the issue of human trafficking, we are strongly on and against the menace.
“The Covid-19 pandemic lockdown actually gave us enough time to strategize since that September 5 we have refused about the passengers departures and they were reffered to National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), We see them as people who have no reason to go out because they did not fulfilled the requirements of crossing the border.
Giving instances of where persons who wanted to travel abroad though with enough money on them, but don’t have the details of what they are going abroad to do, the Immigration boss said, “the service would deny such a passenger departure.
He said once they are denied departures, such a traveller and their sponsors erroneusly regard NIS as their number one enemy in the airport.
“For example, somebody that claimed he or she is going for employment and does not have an employment visa cannot be allowed departure.
A passenger going on visit without a return ticket can never be allowed to cross the border; A woman who claims she’s visiting her husband without marriage certificate or unable to provide the details of the husband will not be given departure; a passenger who claims he or she wants to visit a brother or sister and couldn’t provide the details of residence status of the relations the host country will not be allowed to travel out.
He continues, “or someone who comes with a working visa and claiming she is going to Dubai but during profiling she tells you she going to Egypt because she is holding the air ticket of Egypt Air, cannot be allowed to travel because of the inconsistency in destinations.
“Though some would provide the details of the hosts over there, but when we asked them for their Basic Travel Allowance ( BTA) they tell you they have N20, 000. “
Affirming that such is not allowed in international travel protocol, Usman said, “What has naira got to do with Dubai economy? They don’t spend naira in Dubai. Going to Dubai with N20,000 may not be reasonable to give that passenger departure”
The Immigration boss however said” We give them travel advisory; if you want to go for employment make sure you have employment letter and contract agreements.
He noted that this has been made easy with the formation of Association of recruiters which registered with Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity and works with NAPTIP; making the clearance of the intending passengers seamless .
“But good enough, we have gotten a formal way of processing this type of issue. Now we have association of recruiters in Nigeria and to be licensed by Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity.
Any passenger who wants to travel out for employment through any member of the association would be screened by NAPTIP. As soon as this is done they come to the control post, normally, the airport, then at the control post we look at the processes whether they have the requirements to go out of the country. If they don’t have, we refer them to NAPTIP and this is one of our areas of relationship with NAPTIP, to guide them accordingly when they get to NAPTIP, they would be profiled and any shortcoming noticed on the employment issued they would refer them to Ministry of Labour and Productivity.
“We are happy that the association of recruiters have come on board to function and devoid the touts of facilitating unsuspecting Nigerians travelling aboard for employment.
“From September 5 till date, we now sensitize passengers going out for employment, on what to do and how to go about doing what is right.
“But by the time we handle them over to NAPTIP, we don’t see many of them again because they don’t have the requirements to go. But those of them who meet the requirements are given seamless facilitation.
To buttress his points, Usman said, “On passengers clearance: Since September 5 when the airport was re-opened for scheduled international flights, we have handled about 60 passengers and advised them on why they cannot go and what they have to do to be able to go.
“We are not saying outrightly don’t go. No!. but we tell them if you want to go, and you must go, these are the requirements you must have.
“We don’t want our citizens to be habilities when they arrive in foreign countries.
On its roles as the flagship border control agency, Usman said Nigeria Immigration Service has created a niche for itself as the leading border control agency at the Lagos airport with regular training and retraining of its personnel and deployment of latest technologies to meet the exigencies of the job.
“Training and re-training is a routine in this command because our operation is dynamic. So when we have any new development at hand, we quickly update ourselves with the re-training of our personnel.
“NIS has come with a platform to discourage Nigerians from having two valid traveling passports with this machine or platform the era of using two passport is gone.
“If you have multiple passportyou have nowhere to go again. It has been observed that “Nigerians are found of declaring their passports loss. Of course, they have the right to obtain another one. But there are requirements for doing so.
“But deeply to some, they didn’t loss the passport; yet they get another one so at the end of the day they have two valid passports.
“But by the time they come to the control post here, the system will tell us that the passenger has two valid passport and we would refused him/her departure.
“Also some returnees or repatriated Nigerian claimed they lost their passports in their host countries and they are given Emergency Travel Certificate (ETC) to allow them come to Nigeria, but from experience we would discover that the passengers has not loss the passport or the name he went there with has cancelled. But how do we know? The system has it.
“We have the mandate to verify any Nigerian returning the country through the ETC option.
“The foresic platform verifies passengers’ passport data. Anyone who has obtained Nigeria passport has his or her data on the platform,” Usman asserted.
He explained further, “Even if anyone claimed to have an expired passport, it doesn’t stop him or her from arriving; we only subject the passenger to this machine after harvesting the passengers’ fingerprints; it brings out the old one you claimed you have lost and by the time the interrogation goes on, they begin to confess of what they did with their passport.”
On relationship with other border control agencies, Usman said, ” The Comptroller General of Immigration, Muhammad Babandede has directed for effective synergy with other border control agencies at the airport.
“NIS is the leading agency as far as border control posts is concerned,” Usman asserted.
He said, “All entry points in Lagos Airport are equipped with Migration Information and Data Analysis System (MIDAS).
“Nobody crosses our border post without passing through the system. We are taking good advantage of the technology given to us by the Comptroller General,” the Lagos Airport Immigration boss submitted.
