At least four men were arrested over claims of being brokers in the issuance of passports at Nyayo House, Nairobi.
Officials said the four had been demanding and soliciting bribes to facilitate passport applications.
Police and immigration officials staged the operation following complaints from applicants the brokers demanded money to help in the issuance of the documents.
A brief given after the operation on August 25 said the objective was to arrest brokers who take advantage of members of the public and solicit bribes for otherwise free services.
“This has contributed to a public outcry and a perception of inefficiency and corruption in service delivery.
Four suspected brokers were arrested at booked at Central Police Station.”
The suspects will face charges of preparation to commit a felony and conspiracy to defraud unsuspecting members of the public.
This came as the immigration department circulated numbers to be called for emergency cases.
The Director General of Immigration Services Evelyn Cheluget Monday announced a raft of new measures to improve the processing of passports.
Cheluget said staff members will be increased at various desks and some officers will be deployed abroad.
Counters will also be set aside for emergency cases and day and night shifts shall be introduced from Monday to Sunday and applications will now be received from 7:00 am to 8:30 pm.
“If one has an emergency case of a passport he or she has to be attended to and get the document,” she said.
Addressing immigration officers at Nyayo House, Cheluget expressed optimism that the changes will bolster the processing and issuance of travel documents and effectively address the long-standing delays that have sparked agitation from the public.
Other measures include acquiring new booklets and repairing and purchasing new machines that will allow for 24/7 passport printing.
“We are working hard, the passport section has been working on shifts, we have dedicated counters for urgent cases and all regional heads to boost staff in the urgent counters,” said Chegulet.
This comes amid a backlog that has made Kenyans question why the Immigration Department takes so long to process passports, a process that should take 10 to 15 days.
The department said between July 13 and August 2023, Nyayo House printed 96,310 passports.
Out of these 53,750 were printed by personnel working the day shift, while the remaining 42,560 were processed during the night shifts.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki, vowed to clean up Nyayo House once and for all.
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