Paradigm Initiative Calls Out Nigerian Immigration for Privacy Rights Violation

Paradigm Initiative, Pan-African Digital Rights organisation has written to the Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service, demanding compensation for Ewohime Jeffrey Apkovweta, Nigerian Citizen, whose passport page was posted online following the allegation that he destroyed Nigeria’s diplomatic vehicles in London.

The organisation, while not touching on the separate issue of the vandalization allegation against Mr. Ewohime Jeffrey Apkovweta, is holding Nigerian Immigration accountable for violating the data privacy rights of the citizen by publicly displaying his international passport page, containing personally identifiable information, on social media.

While speaking on the development, Adeboye Adegoke, Program Manager for Anglophone West Africa at Paradigm Initiative, said ‘’the organisation is appalled by the absolute disregard that many government agencies display towards the personal information, including biometric data of citizens in their custody.

“Despite the fact that the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) came out with Data Protection Guidelines for Nigeria, agencies of government and private organizations continue to treat privacy and confidentiality of citizens’ data with levity”. Adeboye continued, “Irrespective of the allegations against the citizen, Nigeria Immigratrion had no right to violate his constitutionally guaranteed right to privacy”.

NITDA’s Data Privacy Guidelines prescribes minimum data protection standards for all organisations or persons that control, collect, store or process personal data of Nigerian residents and citizens within and outside Nigeria.

The scope of persons who are bound by the NITDA Guidelines is clearly specified in Section 1.3 of the Guidelines:

“These guidelines are mandatory for Federal, State and Local Government Agencies and institutions as well as other organizations which own, use or deploy information systems within the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Section 1.4 of the Guidelines further confirms that “the Data Protection Guidelines shall apply to all data controllers in public and private sector as defined in the guidelines”.

It also applies to foreign organisations that process personal data of Nigerian citizens.

Tope Ogundipe, Director of Programs, Paradigm Initiative, stated, ‘’the letter to Nigeria Immigration was written in accordance with section 109 of the Immigration Act requiring a 30-day pre-action notice to state that the Immigration Services pay the citizen a sum of 10,000,000 only as compensation for the citizen, failing which the organization will institute a legal action to achieve this objective and other prayers.

This request is in accordance with the provisions of the Nigerian Data Protection Guidelines”, Ogundipe concluded.