From Umar Dankano, Yola
As the February 2015 general elections draw nearer, the Adamawa State command of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) is aggressively strategizing to weed out foreigners not to partake in the national exercise in the state and nation at large.
The development was disclosed by the state Comptroller of the service, Mr. Ubi Ikpi Nkanu at his office in Yola yesterday during an interactive session with journalists, stressing that his department in collaboration with other security outfits are working tirelessly in manning the country’s borders squarely.
Nkanu urged the staff of the organization to carry out their job with high level of professionalism and dedication in other to ensure that the country’s borders are adequately manned adding that any officer who assisted foreigners to vote will be shown the way out of the job.
“We will fire any staff that conspires to allow foreigners to vote in the next election,” he said.
Nkanu said the major challenge his organization is facing is the insurgency rocking Adamawa State just as he said no meaningful development can be achieved in a situation of war but added that “despite the challenge, my organization is doing its best to ensure that foreigners did not infiltrate the country,”
He noted that Adamawa indigenes are responding positively to the e-passport scheme established by the federal government adding that about 5000 people have obtained their passport in 2014 alone.
The Comptroller said as part of the Federal Governments effort to ensure sanity across border communities, the federal government has mapped out strategic plan to provide infrastructure across the border communities adding that the development will lead to the entrenchment of peace in the areas.
Nkanu urged the border communities to assist his organization with information about movement of suspected people around their areas as he said such gesture will assist in providing a water tight security in the state.
