By Kelechi Ogunleye
The federal government says it will begin the clampdown on irregular migrants in the country on August 1.
The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday in Abuja during a meeting with the Nigerian Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA).
Tunji-Ojo said that the federal government gave irregular migrants a three-month grace period starting May 1.
“So by August 1, there will be a strict clampdown on irregular immigrants. We hope people will take advantage of the three-month grace period to regularise and subject themselves to established immigration protocols,” he said.
The Minister also disclosed that the new Expatriate Administration System (EAS) would commence on May 1, after which enforcement would begin on August 1.
He added that there would be an immigration amnesty programme to regularise due processes for three months.
According to him, the federal government will no longer tolerate a situation where some companies obstruct the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) from performing its legitimate duties.
“We have agreed that the era when very few companies behave irresponsibly by distorting, blocking, and avoiding being subject to immigration laws will no longer be tolerated.
“We all agree with the private sector that by the law, the immigration service has a right to do their job and must perform their mandate.
“We will be very hard on any company that avoids or prevents the NIS from carrying out its legal responsibility, as we will not tolerate that going forward.”
Tunji-Ojo further said fees were also reviewed to encourage sustainability for specific government citizenship and business activities.
“We have jointly agreed, negotiated and met in the middle. A detailed breakdown will be provided officially,” he said.
