{"id":164573,"date":"2025-05-27T21:59:20","date_gmt":"2025-05-27T20:59:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports"},"modified":"2025-05-27T23:15:46","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T22:15:46","slug":"weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports","title":{"rendered":"We\u2019ve cleared debt, backlogs of over 200,000 int\u2019l passports"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Nigeria. <\/strong><\/span>Nigeria\u2019s Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said the federal government has cleared over 200,000 unprocessed passport applications since he assumed office.<\/p>\n

Tunji-Ojo also revealed that N28 billion in old debts have been cleared, all without extra funding from the government.<\/p>\n

He made these revelations during the Access Bank Guest Lecture Series held in Lagos on Monday.<\/p>\n

Speaking on the topic \u201cDare to Dream, Dare to Innovate,\u201d he called for bold leadership, system reform, and the smart use of technology.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeadership is not about reacting to problems; it is about foreseeing and solving them before they occur. And for that, you must always ask, What is your purpose? How will you execute it? And when is the right time to act?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He further gave a detailed explanation on how his ministry used innovation, technology, and planning to clear passport backlogs and debts.<\/p>\n

Under his stewardship, new systems like e-visa platforms, contactless passport renewals for Nigerians abroad, and advanced passenger tracking have been launched.<\/p>\n

Speaking on Nigeria\u2019s prisons, Tunji-Ojo said the correctional system is in bad shape.<\/p>\n

He pointed out that more than 4,000 inmates are behind bars simply because they can\u2019t pay fines as low as N50,000.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not a legal crisis; it is a moral one. A society that punishes poverty more harshly than crime has lost its moral compass,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cA correctional facility must correct, not condemn. Justice without dignity is injustice in disguise.\u201d<\/p>\n

Access Holdings chairman, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, praised Tunji-Ojo\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cInnovation is not about big budgets; it is about big thinking,\u201d he said, adding that the minister\u2019s work shows what real public service should look like.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Nigeria<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Nigeria. Nigeria\u2019s Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said the federal government has cleared over 200,000 unprocessed passport applications since he assumed office. Tunji-Ojo also revealed that N28 billion in old debts have been cleared, all without extra funding from the government. He made these revelations during the Access Bank Guest Lecture Series held […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":164572,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,15],"tags":[254,11219],"class_list":["post-164573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-economy","tag-nigeria","tag-tunji-ojo"],"yoast_head":"\nWe\u2019ve cleared debt, backlogs of over 200,000 int\u2019l passports - Nigeria<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Nigeria\u2019s Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said the federal government has cleared over 200,000 unprocessed pas ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"We\u2019ve cleared debt, backlogs of over 200,000 int\u2019l passports\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Nigeria\u2019s Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said the federal government has cleared over 200,000 unprocessed pas ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Nigeria\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-05-27T20:59:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-27T22:15:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/sites\/3\/2025\/05\/sm_1748371601.911651.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1481\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"971\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"We\u2019ve cleared debt, backlogs of over 200,000 int\u2019l passports\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-27T20:59:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-27T22:15:46+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports\"},\"wordCount\":298,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/sites\/3\/2025\/05\/sm_1748371601.911651.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Nigeria\",\"Tunji-Ojo\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Economy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/economy\/weve-cleared-debt-backlogs-of-over-200000-intl-passports\",\"name\":\"We\u2019ve cleared debt, backlogs of over 200,000 int\u2019l passports - 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