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Interior CS Kithure Kindiki has cranked up the heat at the Department of Immigration over the backlog in the issuance of passports.
Following his series of impromptu inspections at Nyayo House, CS Kindiki called a meeting of immigration officials at Nyayo House on September 8.
Among those in the meeting were Immigration and Citizen Services Principal Secretary Prof. Julius Bitok and Immigration and Citizen Services Director General Evelyn Cheluget.
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During the meeting, the CS stressed that the backlog of over 40,000 passports should be released in the next 10 days.
“The 10-day countdown to clear the historical backlog of pending 40,000 plus passport applications is on.
“Deployment of day and night shifts to facilitate full-capacity printing of passports, procurement of modern printing equipment, and recruitment of additional immigration officers will help us resolve the systemic challenges that have hampered service delivery,” he said.
During an impromptu visit to Nyayo House on Thursday, September 7, CS Kindiki said he was impressed at the service delivery.
“Reviewed operations at the Immigration Department are bearing fruit. Citizens seeking passports and other vital citizenship documents are being served with courtesy, and their inquiries responded to by our members of staff.
“We are determined to clear the backlog and process new applications expeditiously,” he stated.
Immigration PS Julius Bitok in August announced that the crackdown on suspected brokers and their accomplices linked to the passports-issuance racket will be extended to other cities and towns.
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He added that with the arrival of new printers and the implementation of the proposed private-public-partnership, the waiting period for passports will be cut down to within a week and eventually lead to express services.
He added that the government was determined to rid Nyayo House of conmen and middlemen who are suspected to be working with Immigration officers to extort bribes from applicants seeking passports and other services.