Jonathan launches new e-passport, tasks Immigration officials on service delivery

President Goodluck Jonathan has urged Immigration officials to improve on their services to visitors and travelers at the airports as they present the first image of the country.

Speaking at the launch of the new 64-page e-passport at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the president also noted that if the Immigration officers conduct themselves poorly, it reflects on the country as their conducts at the airports are key and not just the passports.

The new 64-page e-passport is specially designed for frequent travelers as well as businessmen.

At the event, which held shortly before the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, the president also urged Nigerians to paint respectful pictures of their country so that others will see it in the same light.

“What affects every traveler is how efficient and committed our Immigration officers work at our airports. Visitors that come into the country have different impressions about our Immigration officers, so they must improve, they are the image of this country, how they handle visitors matters so much, if they conduct themselves poorly, it reflects on all of us, so their conducts at the airports are key besides the passport.

“The issue of the image of the country is what we will all work for, both people in government, the media and civil society and I always say that when people continue to paint their country with all kinds of colours, that is the way they will associate those colours with your green passport.

“I want a situation that whenever you travel to another country and you raise your green passport, people will appreciate you and not when you raise your green passport, people will begin to think that that green passport signifies some suspicious character.

“We are not helping ourselves when we paint ourselves in the colours that we are supposed to bear. I wish to continue to appeal to all Nigerians that we must all collectively learn how we do our things, statements that we make, to paint brighter colours for our green passport”, he said.

The president added that the security of the Nigerian travel document was more important in the issue of the 64-page passport as well as where to get it.

“If our passport could be easily faked by criminals, then we will have problems. One thing again is that how can Nigerians be able to get passport easily especially those living outside this country”, he said.