Immigration nabs Nigerien nationals with PVCs, other documents in Sokoto

From Raji Bello, Sokoto

The Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), Sokoto state Command has seized no fewer than 452 permanent voter and identity cards and birth certificates from some nationals of Niger republic.

The Controller of the Service in the state, Mr. Yunusa Aliyu disclosed this at a news briefing in Sokoto on Thursday.

Aliyu stated that out of the figure, 66 were permanent voter cards, 33 temporary voter cards, as well as 271 and 69 old and new national identification cards.

The rest of the seized national documents were one local government identification cards and 12 birth certificates.

Aliyu said that all the documents were seized by the officers attached to the Tureta checkpoint of the service along Sokoto -Gusau road.

The Controller said that these national documents which are supposed to be issued to only bonafide Nigerians were issued in other southern states of the country.

“This is because it is extremely difficult there to differentiate between the Hausas from the northern Nigeria and those from the neighbouring Niger Republic,” Aliyu, averred.

The controller promised that officers and men of the service in the command will continue to be diligent in the discharge of their responsibilities.

In a related development, some officers attached to the border guards units under the command had recently intercepted a stolen vehicle along the Tangaza-Balle road in the state.

According to Aliyu, “the suspected car snatchers were stopped for a routine search by the officers but they refused to stop and they fled.

“The officers consequently pursued them and they later abandoned the vehicle and fled, although no suspect was arrested,” he explained.

The controller stated that the vehicle had since been handed over to the state police command.

“The owner had also came to our command to claim the recovered vehicle but he was referred to the police command for proper identification and claim,’’ Aliyu, added.