Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ) wants the Ministry of Interior and Administration of National Government to increase budgetary allocation to the Department of Immigration for the purchase of new high-capacity passport printing machines.
The breakdown of machines there has been causing delays in the production of passports.
CAJ further wants PS, State Department of Immigration and Citizen Services to cause an audit of the National Database and Registration Authority system for the 2021-2023 period to identify passport applicants whose excess payments have not been refunded.
CAJ said Tuesday, June 6 the PS should ensure applicants whose excess payments have not been refunded are identified from the system audit are promptly refunded their monies.
“The PS is to report back to the Commission on steps taken within six months upon release of this report,” the Commission stated.
This was contained in a report which noted that the e-citizen system has eased and improved the efficiency of the passport application and payment processes.
CAJ found out that delays in the processing of passports and the unavailability of a particular passport series on the e-citizen platform were found to be occasioned majorly by two factors, which included delays in the approval of the procurement of blank passport booklets, and, continuous breakdown of printing machines at the Department of Immigration.
CAJ’s investigations into allegations that the Department of Immigration overcharged citizens for passports have established the claims were true.
The report by CAJ said all of the nine allegations made against the department were founded to be true.
“The seven applicants/complainants applied and paid for ‘B’ Series passports but were issued with ‘A’ series passports with no refund of the excess payment,” the report said.
It said one complainant topped up her payment from “A” series to “B” series but was still issued with “A” series without a refund of the excess payment.
It added that another complainant was forced to reapply for her passport as a lost passport when immigration officers allegedly misplaced her application during an application for renewal.
It said the applicant was issued with the originally applied passport though with fewer pages than what was paid for without a refund of either her first excess payment of Sh1,500 or her second payment for a lost passport of Sh12,050.
The investigation was prompted by complaints made online on social media via a Facebook page called “Wanderlust Diaries Ltd” against the Department of Immigration.
