4th July, 2018
The Comptroller, Nigeria Immigration Service in Cross River, Mr Felix Uche, said on Wednesday that illegal migration has drastically reduced at the border between the state and neighbouring countries.
Uche disclosed this on Wednesday at the Passing Out Parade of 84 newly-recruited personnel of the NIS, who concluded their induction course, at the state command in Calabar.
Cross River shares common border and maritime domain with other African countries including Cameroon.
Uche, who did not give the statistics, said that the force had been re-positioned by the Comptroller-General of NIS, Mr Mohammed Babandede, to deliver quality service.
According to him, NIS personnel are maintaining steady presence across all border routes in the state with a view to clamp down on all forms of illegalities and also curb illegal migration.
“The issue of Cross River been porous was in the past, not these days because the state is highly secured.
“The seaport is fully secured because we now have the Migration Information and Data Analysis System (MIDAS).
“MIDAS equipment now profiles anyone leaving this country to any other part of the world. The issue of illegal migration from Cross River is now a thing of the past.
“The equipment profiles you biometrically and otherwise. Your complete data is documented; so the issue of leaving Cross River to other part of the country un-noticed is no longer there.
“We are trying our best to make sure that the state borders are completely guarded and secured and that is why the issue of illegal migration has reduced drastically,” he said.
He charged the graduating personnel to be good ambassadors of the NIS and Nigeria, adding that a new curriculum system had been designed to equip them with the overall operations of the NIS.
“The induction course is the basic training for the newly recruited personnel. From here, you are expected to proceed to further training in other states of the federation.
“Now that you have come on board, you know that you have come to do the immigration work and our primary function is to secure the borders among others things that we do,” he said.