The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has directed the Nigeria Immigration Service to withdraw and deactivate passports held by individuals who have formally renounced their Nigerian citizenship.
The directive was contained in a statement issued on Saturday by his Special Adviser on Media, Alao Babatunde. It applies to Nigerians whose renunciation requests have been approved by the President.
Tunji-Ojo said the ministry, which oversees matters of citizenship, based its decision on Section 29(1) and (2) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
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The statement quoted the constitutional provision as stating: “(1)Any citizen of Nigeria of full age who wishes to renounce his Nigerian citizenship shall make a declaration in the prescribed manner for the renunciation.
“(2)The President shall cause the declaration made under subsection (1) of this section to be registered and upon such registration, the person who made the declaration shall cease to be a citizen of Nigeria.”
According to the statement, the minister said that once a person is no longer a citizen, they are not entitled to hold any Nigerian sovereign document, including a passport.
He added that the move aligns with ongoing passport and visa reforms by the ministry.
He said the directive is meant to address a gap that allowed former citizens to continue using Nigerian passports after their renunciation had been recognised.
“We will continue to strengthen systems that secure Nigeria’s borders, prevent identity fraud, preserve the sanctity of Nigerian citizenship, and facilitate legitimate travel while preventing unauthorised or ineligible access,” Tunji-Ojo said.
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