Minister of interior Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo has said it is “inhumane” for the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) to ask married women to come to its headquarters in Abuja to effect a change of name on their passports.
At a recent dinner with members of the Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu ABAT Media Centre and some social media influencers in Abuja, he said women are not subjected to such inhuman practices on account of marriage anywhere in the world.
“There is one stupid thing I have seen and it is that a woman gets married, changes her name, and then she has to come to Abuja all the way from say Kaura Namoda or Enugu just to come and effect a change of name in her passport. It is absurd.
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“I can’t just figure it that you want to change just your name and you have to be in Abuja. I have asked the immigration people, is it that immigration people in Abuja have more than one head than those in the states?” he asked.
Tunji-Ojo declared that the passport issue remains the least of his worries, adding that as of March, the new passport reforms he is putting in place would ensure contactless biometrics enrolment to allow Nigerians to do their enrolments from their comfort zones.
He, however, noted that he wants more secure borders for the country.
“With the new reforms, you don’t need to travel to Abuja to change your data. Everything will be online,” the minister said.
