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| President Ahmed Bola Tinubu |
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved 18-month tenure extensions for the heads of two key paramilitary agencies under the Ministry of Interior, a move framed by the Presidency as necessary to close succession gaps while consolidating reforms in border management, migration control, and custodial administration.
Sylvester Ndidi Nwakuche, Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), will now remain in office until May 26, 2028. Kemi Nanna Nandap, Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), will serve until June 30, 2028. The decision, announced on Monday, October 19, 2026, in a State House statement by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, followed a recommendation from Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
Tinubu commended both officers for reforms achieved under their leadership and charged them to build on those gains. The extensions, according to the Presidency, address succession shortfalls in both services and give their respective boards adequate time to identify and appoint successors.
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Background on the Appointees
Nandap, a career immigration officer, joined the NIS on October 9, 1989. Tinubu nominated her as Comptroller-General on February 21, 2024; the Senate confirmed the appointment on March 1, 2024. Her initial term was set to end around August 2025, after which it was extended to December 31, 2026, in recognition of progress in border management, process modernisation, and national security measures. The latest extension pushes her service further into 2028. @aonanuga1956
Nwakuche, born November 26, 1966, in Oguta, Imo State, joined the then Nigerian Prisons Service in 1990 as an Assistant Superintendent.
He rose through the ranks, serving as Deputy Controller-General in charge of Training and Staff Development before Tinubu appointed him Acting Controller-General in December 2024 following the retirement of Haliru Nababa. The Senate confirmed him as substantive Controller-General in March 2025. He holds a BA in Theatre Arts from the University of Calabar, an MSc in Political Science (International Relations) from the University of Lagos, a diploma in French, and is a Member of the National Institute (mni) from the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies. He also holds the national honour of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR).
Context of the Extensions: Succession Pressures and Continuity
The dual extension reflects practical realities within Nigeria’s paramilitary services. Career progression rules, retirement ages, and the concentration of experience at senior levels often create bottlenecks when leadership transitions approach. Reports earlier in 2026 noted hundreds of NIS officers, including senior ranks, facing retirement, raising questions about depth of ready successors. Similar dynamics exist in the Correctional Service, where institutional knowledge of security protocols, inmate management, and inter-agency coordination is critical.
By granting additional time, the administration seeks continuity in agencies central to internal security and the implementation of the Renewed Hope Agenda. Minister Tunji-Ojo has driven a reform agenda across Interior Ministry agencies since 2023, emphasising technology, welfare, decongestion, and performance accountability.
The recommendation for extensions aligns with that approach of prioritising operational stability during periods of institutional change.
Reforms Under Nandap at the Nigeria Immigration Service
Under Nandap’s leadership, the NIS has accelerated digital transformation. Passport application backlogs that once exceeded 200,000 were substantially cleared in the early phase of Tunji-Ojo’s tenure through capacity expansion and process reforms. Centralised passport personalisation, contactless renewal options for the diaspora, e-gates with biometric and facial recognition at major airports (including Lagos and Abuja), electronic landing and exit cards, and advanced passenger information systems have been rolled out or expanded.
More recent initiatives include AI-assisted tools and digital audit trails for real-time monitoring of officers and border activities, integration of migration databases holding millions of records, body cameras at airports, a Special Border Force, and plans for a biometric Single Travel Emergency Passport. Anti-corruption desk officers have been deployed across formations, and large-scale promotions and training programmes have sought to boost morale and professional capacity. Nandap has repeatedly stressed integrity, vigilance, and alignment with national security priorities.
These efforts sit within Tunji-Ojo’s broader technology roadmap, which includes a large data centre and systems aimed at harmonising identity and migration records across agencies to reduce vulnerabilities from fragmented data.
Challenges and Progress in the Nigerian Correctional Service Under Nwakuche
Nwakuche assumed leadership of a service long burdened by overcrowding. As of early 2026 figures, total inmate population stood around 80,000–86,000 against an official capacity near 68,000, with awaiting-trial persons consistently forming the majority (often 60–64 per cent).
Many facilities suffer from ageing infrastructure, pressure on feeding and healthcare budgets, and limited rehabilitation capacity.
Priorities under Nwakuche have included strengthening security of custodial centres, expanding non-custodial measures (community service, probation, restorative justice), accelerating infrastructure upgrades, improving inmate and staff welfare, and deepening collaboration with the judiciary, police, and state authorities to speed trials and facilitate decongestion. Non-custodial directorates have been established across the 36 states and the FCT. Recidivism figures have been reported to decline significantly in some official accounts, attributed to enhanced rehabilitation and vocational programmes, though overall population pressures remain acute.
Tunji-Ojo’s ministry has supported these efforts through fine payments for indigent inmates, mattress and basic welfare interventions, expansion of educational opportunities (including National Open University centres), and emphasis on shifting from pure detention toward rehabilitation and reintegration. Nwakuche has publicly prioritised security, decongestion, capacity building, and staff welfare as core pillars.
Broader Implications and Analysis
The extensions continue a pattern in which the Tinubu administration has retained or extended experienced heads in security-related agencies when reforms are underway and succession pipelines appear thin. Critics of tenure elongations sometimes argue they can slow the injection of new leadership or create perceptions of favouritism; supporters counter that abrupt changes risk disrupting hard-won operational gains, particularly in complex agencies handling borders, migration, and custodial security.
For the NIS, sustained modernisation is critical as Nigeria manages regional migration flows, economic opportunities, and security threats that exploit porous borders. For the NCoS, progress on non-custodial alternatives and infrastructure will determine whether overcrowding eases and rehabilitation becomes more effective. Both agencies operate under the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board, and their performance feeds directly into public confidence in the Ministry of Interior’s reform narrative.
Tinubu’s charge to both officers to “consolidate the gains” places the onus on measurable delivery over the next 18 months—whether through further digital rollout and border efficiency metrics for Immigration, or tangible reductions in awaiting-trial populations, improved facility conditions, and expanded non-custodial use for Corrections.
The appointments and extensions underscore the administration’s preference for continuity in technical leadership within paramilitary services while the broader institutional reforms driven by the Interior Minister take deeper root. How effectively Nwakuche and Nandap use the additional time, and how successfully the boards prepare credible succession plans, will shape the next phase of these agencies’ contribution to Nigeria’s internal security architecture.
Samuel O. Sulaimon is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Naijapiz. He covers News, Sports, Finance, Faiths, Education, Politics and Technology.
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