The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has called for an investigation into the donation of electronic equipment by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), alleged that the gesture could create room for undue influence and discrimination against Muslim applicants.
MURIC made the call in a statement issued on Tuesday by its Founder and Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola.
According to the organisation, the church donated 20 HP Envy All-in-One computers, 20 ARH passport readers, 20 Logitech webcams, two HP LaserJet printers and five HP ZBook laptop computers to the NIS to support immigration operations at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
MURIC questioned why a federal agency under the Ministry of Interior would rely on equipment donated by a religious organisation for the performance of sensitive official duties.
The organisation alleged that such donations could potentially become a channel for influence over recruitment and operations within the immigration service, particularly to the disadvantage of Muslim applicants.
It also raised concerns over reports of Muslim women being asked to remove their hijabs, as well as Muslim men allegedly being asked to remove turbans or caps during passport processing.
MURIC further alleged, without providing evidence, that the donated equipment could have been tampered with or programmed in a manner that discriminates against Islamic modes of dressing during biometric or image capture.
The organisation also questioned a statement attributed to the church that the equipment would facilitate the processing of arriving missionaries, asking whether missionaries should receive any special treatment compared with other travellers.
MURIC said the church’s own account indicated that the donation followed a request from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Command of the NIS for computer systems to improve the efficiency of platforms including MIDAS, E-Gate, e-Visa Clearance and e-Landing/Exit Card.
The group questioned whether government ministries and agencies should routinely solicit sensitive operational equipment from religious organisations, arguing that such arrangements require greater transparency and accountability.
“MURIC calls for a probe into this allegation. Our women, our Imams and other Muslims have suffered untold hardship in the hands of Immigration officials to allow this to go unchallenged,” Akintola said.
He urged the Ministry of Interior to investigate the circumstances surrounding the donation and make its findings public.
MURIC said the investigation should determine the circumstances that led to the donation, how the equipment is being deployed and whether the arrangement has created any form of undue influence or discriminatory treatment within the immigration service.
