Nigeria’s Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, revealed on Monday that over 200,000 unprocessed passport applications have been cleared since he assumed office, alongside the payment of ₦28 billion in inherited debts—all without additional government funding.

Speaking at the Access Bank Guest Lecture Series in Lagos on the theme “Dare to Dream, Dare to Innovate,” Tunji-Ojo emphasized the need for bold leadership, system reform, and smart use of technology. He outlined the ministry’s success using innovation and planning to streamline services, including the introduction of e-visa platforms, contactless passport renewals for Nigerians abroad, and advanced passenger tracking systems.

On correctional reforms, the Minister described Nigeria’s prison conditions as dire, highlighting that over 4,000 inmates remain incarcerated for inability to pay fines as low as ₦50,000. “This is not a legal crisis, it is a moral one,” he said, announcing efforts with private donors to help release non-violent offenders and plans to shift the correctional system towards rehabilitation over punishment.

Reform initiatives include digital case tracking, vocational training, and public-private partnerships aimed at improving prison facilities.

Access Holdings Chairman, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, commended Tunji-Ojo’s leadership, stating, “Innovation is not about big budgets, it is about big thinking.”

The lecture series, attended by business leaders and public officials, forms part of Access Bank’s national dialogue on leadership and transformation. Tunji-Ojo closed with a powerful call for purposeful living and national performance: “Let Nigeria not just be a country of potential, let it be a nation of performance.”