The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, says that five of the nation’s international airports have been fitted with new e-gates technology for passenger profiling and has led to the arrest of at least 10 persons of interest.
The minister who spoke on Thursday during the Channels Television Programme said the automated border control systems installed at the airports were integrated with data provided by the International Criminal Police Organisation and those of security agencies in Nigeria.
He said: “Automatically, it (e-gates) flags that but I don’t want to discuss too much on that for security reasons but trust me, it is already integrated to watchlists, to Interpol.”
“I tell you something, in (a) few days, about 10 people were apprehended who were persons of interest. Nigeria is a no-go area for persons of interest.
“It’s about being able to pre-empt, being able to know and deduce crime beforehand. That’s what you see in the United States, in the UK, and all over the world.
“They tell you some people are planning terrorism and they have been arrested. You don’t just allow it to happen before you start looking for them. You don’t want people to come into Nigeria, commit atrocities, then you now arrest them after people have lost their lives, after properties have been lost,” he said.
The minister also stated that the e-gates technology has removed human interference and interface in immigration operations at the airports.
He said the technology can detect fake passports with its advanced passenger information system, adding that the Nigeria Immigration Service now profiles passengers before they come into the country through the nation’s airports.
