Immigration Boss Decries Bribery In Agency

The new Comptroller-General of
Immigration, David Parradang, has
expressed dissatisfaction with the
quality of service at the NIS
headquarters in Abuja.
Parradang noted that many officers
had made bribery and corruption a
way of life and abandoned the
professionalism the service was
known for.
The CG, who was sworn-in on
Monday, however, warned the
officers and men of the service to do
their jobs as professionals, adding
that his administration would not
condone laxity and any act of
indiscipline.
Addressing headquarters staff in
Abuja on Thursday at his maiden
meeting with them, Parradang
expressed his plans to transform the
service into a world-class agency.
The NIS boss said he was
determined to deliver quality service
to Nigerians and to achieve positive
results.
According to him, no officer will be
allowed to stay longer than necessary
in a department or unit, adding that
all the young officers would soon be
deployed in the borders for guard
duty.
Parradang hinted that senior officers,
who failed promotion examinations
thrice would be eased out of the
service to the pave way for bright
and talented officers to move up in
the service.
He said, "I am not satisfied with the
quality of service at the
headquarters; what kind of service
are you offering if you collect bribe?
The only thing Federal Government
owes you is salaries.
"I would rather be removed than
allow you to collect fixed amount on
passport or take N1000 for a file. We
will execute the law; if I don't have
double standards, why won't I
execute the law?"
The CG promised to focus on
capacity building and welfare for
officers and to ensure that the
borders were well secured.
He pledged to work with other
security agencies to professionalise
security at the borders and remove
irregular immigrants "after a process
that is targeted, powered by
intelligence and data."