Access to the Immigration Department Headquarters in Nyayo House will be restricted to members of staff and service-seekers with the necessary documents, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has announced. 

In a statement on Thursday, August 31, CS Kithure disclosed that the crackdown on cartels extorting applicants for passports had been initiated.  

"The crackdown on cartels extorting applicants of passports and other vital citizenship documents at the immigration department is on, and all those involved in the criminal acts will be arrested and prosecuted in accordance with the law.

"No person will be allowed to hang around Nyayo House, and being a facility processing vital security documents, access will only be granted to applicants with the necessary documents and staff members," part of the statement read.  

The Interior CS said that special desks had been established to fast-track all emergency applications at Nyayo House. 

"To facilitate orderly, timeous, and responsive processing of passports and other citizenship documents, special desks have been established to fast track all emergency applications, including those of persons seeking medical care, academic opportunities, and job openings that have clear deadlines and have presented the necessary supporting documents.

"No applicant should give any money to facilitate faster processing and issuance of passports. The backlog of 44,000 applications will be resolved within 14 days and all subsequent applications will be processed expeditiously," he stated.