VISA ON ARRIVAL: Senate summons Aregbesola, Immigration chief to provide details on policy

The Senate on Tuesday summoned the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, to provide details on the visa on arrival policy for Africans coming into Nigeria introduced recently by the Federal Government.

While in Egypt for the Aswan Forum for Sustainable Peace and Development in Africa, President Muhammadu Buhari had announced the new policy where persons with passports of other African countries would be issued visa at the point of entry into Nigeria.

This policy, he said would take effect in January 2020.

However, the lawmakers have argued that the policy was in furtherance of the continental free trade agreement which needs to be domesticated.

Following the adoption of a motion sponsored by Sen. Adewunmi Adetunbi (APC-Ekiti North), the Senate resolved to summon Minister of Interior and the Comptroller-General of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), Muhammad Babandede, before the Senate Committees on Interior Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters.

The duo are to inform the upper legislative chamber on the technical, logistics, legal and constitutional issues that were available and required for compliance before the implementation of the said visa on arrival policy.

The motion is titled: “Urgent need to seek domestication of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement by an act of the National Assembly prior to the implementation of the proposed Visa-on-Arrival for citizens of African countries as recently directed by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS)”.

READ ALSO: Buhari govt’s visa free policy for Africa will lead to conflict, total catastrophy —Fani-Kayode

Moving the motion, Adetunbi said: “We must legislate on the policy before it is implemented. Let them bring the Immigration Act to amend so as to put this into consideration. The motion is in order and the President should send the Immigration Act for us to amend”.

“Neither the Federal Executive Council (FEC) nor a member of the National Assembly has yet submitted to the National Assembly a bill for the domestication of the said African Continental Free Trade Agreement.”

The senator, therefore, said it was premature constitutionally and legally impossible for the provisions of the said agreement to have any effect within the territory of Nigeria.

“The National Assembly has not delegated its powers of legislation to the domestication of international treaties and agreements under Section 12 of the 1999 Constitution to either the president of the Federal Republic or to the Nigeria Immigration Service or any other agency,” he added.

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