Mountain residents travel to Palopo for passport services

A common saying states that residents living in the mountains must travel down to process their passports. It is 3:11 PM Central Indonesian Time (WITA), with less than 49 minutes until the closure of the Class II Immigration Office (Non-TPI) in Palopo, South Sulawesi. Four residents are still waiting in the reception area for service.

One of them is 50-year-old Warnidah Nurham, sitting calmly and playing with her phone in the main waiting area of the Palopo Immigration Office. The middle-aged woman is waiting for her turn to undergo a Statement of Examination (BAP) as her passport was accidentally damaged.

This is the housewife’s first time handling her passport application independently at the Palopo Immigration Office. The passport is needed for her second Umrah pilgrimage.

She recounted that her first passport was processed by a travel agent. This time, for her second Umrah, her passport was damaged and needed replacement. Warnidah handled the replacement herself by visiting the Palopo immigration office directly.

“I wasn’t confused at all; everything went smoothly. Staff assisted me from the start, guiding me through the process. It’s all straightforward now; I’m just waiting for the BAP,” Warnidah said in her cheerful Sulawesi accent during the interview.

Upon arriving at the Palopo Immigration Office, Warnidah was greeted by the Immigration Service Ambassador, who inquired about her needs and directed her to customer service for processing.

Warnidah had registered via the M-Paspor app for passport renewal, but as her passport was damaged by water, she needed to first undergo the BAP process for replacement.

Warnidah noted that the Class II Immigration Office (Non-TPI) Palopo made it easy for her to access immigration services independently. The comfortable waiting area and friendly staff also put her at ease.

Elderly and disability-friendly