The e-passport nightmare at Nyayo House, serving only 600 applicants daily

The rush to acquire new e-passports ahead of the August deadline continues with long queues being witnessed at Nyayo House in Nairobi.

There is currently a deadline of August 31,2019 when the old passport will be rendered obsolete and no longer usable for travels outside the country.

A Spot check by Citizen Digital revealed that applicants start arriving as early as 3am, for a process that has been agonizingly slow.

More than 1000 people will have already borne the brunt of the cold when the doors open at 6am, but despite waking up early some are not so lucky.

They also spend long hours at the Immigration offices, given the shortage of officers tasked to serve the ever swelling numbers.

It also emerged that only 600 applicants can be served at Nyayo House per day.

The Immigration boss Alexander Muteshi however told Citizen TV that the congestion is a result of a misconception.

Muteshi sought to clarify that the deadline will only affect holders of the old passport but new applicants will continue applying even when the deadline laspses.

The Immigration Director General also urged applicants to make use of decentralized passport issuance centers newly opened in Eldoret, Kisii, Embu and Nakuru.

Kenyans in diaspora can get the new Passports in centers located in Johannesburg (South Africa), Berlin (Germany), London (UK), Paris (France), Washington DC (US) and in Dubai.