Passport Renewal: Nigerians Decry Gaping Corruption At Nigerian Embassy In London

• . . . some corrupt officers of the embassy, in connivance with some agents have exacerbated the status quo by striking backhanded deals to contravene due process.

A UK based Nigerian lady has decried the systemic corruption being perpetrated by officials of the Nigerian High Commission in London.

The lady, who spoke with our correspondent on condition of anonymity said the officials of the High Commission have insidiously established a shoddy practice of obtaining financial inducements to subvert the queue of applications piled up due to certain COVID-19 restrictions that has restrained issuance of passports more swiftly.

As earlier reported by EKO HOT BLOG, there is a backlog of applications currently occasioned by the COVID 19 epidemic.

However, some corrupt officers of the embassy, in connivance with some agents have exacerbated the status quo by striking backhanded deals to contravene due process.

According to her, some officials at the embassy have imposed a £200 (£150 for minors) bribe as a siné-qua-non to treat applications outside the queue, thereby extending the waiting period for the thousands of applications in the already clustered backlog.

A text message from an official of the embassy to the informant reads: “The current circular issued by high commission is saying an application done now; you’ll be? put on a queue as earlier applications would be given priority.
So If you want to apply observing due process when I process an adult application it’s £150/head( the caveat here is you’re in possession of current Nigerian passport booklet not photocopy ) while for minor it’s £130/head. All inclusive. However if you intend coming early not waiting for 18000 people to be served first and possibility of get passport under a week it’s £340/head Adult application and £300/ head minor application.”

This means that those 18000 applicants waiting since 2019 will not be attended to as long as these unscrupulous practices continue unabated. The queue will continue to grow exponentially since priority will be given to some unscrupulous individuals who lack the moral rectitude to follow due process.

She called on NIDCOM Chairman, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Minister for Foreign affairs, Mr. Godfrey Onyeama and relevant Government agencies  to intervene and fastrack the process as discussed at the inaugural NiDCOM Diaspora summit.

READ ALSO: Abike Dabiri, Zubair, Aregbesola, Headline NIDCOM Inaugural Summit

The shocking revelation of the widespread corruption within the Nigerian High Commission in London echoes as a subtle reminder of the need for the Nigerian citizenry to play it’s part in the collective quest to rid the country of the pervasive corruption that has been largely responsible for the country’s perennial stagnation.

While there have been several calls from different quarters of the society for the President Muhammadu Buhari administration to lead by example and refrain from the common corrupt shenanigans Government and it’s principal officers have been responsible for, the average Nigerian is still at best, a corruption case waiting to happen.

The call should therefore be a Clarion one, for public officials and citizens alike to embrace such values and standards capable of producing the egalitarian society we have strived to attain for so long.