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SIM card registration: Nigerians fear failure

Nyagba insisted that if it is a private sector initiative, the registration would work. He said that anything that has government involvement always fails, since…

Nyagba insisted that if it is a private sector initiative, the registration would work. He said that anything that has government involvement always fails, since government in Nigeria has proven to lack capacity to provide even the least of services to the people.

Mr. David Ribok, another Abuja resident exclaimed that the idea is “absurd,” since he found it difficult to imagine that the whole SIM cards used by millions of subscribers will be registered within a very short time. “I don’t believe it is possible to execute such a huge task.”

For Miss Rosita Okeke, “How can they register SIM cards just like that, the idea is crazy? They should have done this so called SIM card registration right from the inception of mobile telecommunications in Nigeria. Doing this now will be a waste of peoples’ precious time. Subscribers will not be able to enjoy good network connection again. Even when we do not have such a huge task going on, we experience network failure frequently. So, what will happen when that is going on?”

REGISTERING RURAL, ILLITERATE POPULACE MAY POSE THE GREATEST CHALLENGE

Garba Yakubu too has misgivings about the registration especially as it involves rural dwellers and the illiterate populace who are in large numbers.

“Well it’s a good idea to register SIM cards, but how do they intend to execute it successfully? You have people in the rural areas who use  GSM, how do they get their SIM cards registered? Some of them are not even educated. Like I said, the idea is good—to have your SIM card registered with your name but how they are going to do it successfully is where the problem lies,” he said.

Pa Idowu Folaranmi, a peasant farmer in Agada, a sleepy village in Ipokia Local Government Area of Ogun State can not read and write. He has never received any form of western education in his life and he wondered how he could be able to cope with the SIM card registration exercise.

Apart from her name and probably her home and shop addresses, Aduke Martins, a trader at Agege market does not have any other form of identity. She has not been given her national identity card since she registered for it about eight years ago and she said she would find it difficult to comply with the SIM registration exercise.

WHY THE REGISTRATION IS NECESSARY—NCC

NCC, in a statement December last year, directed all telecom operating companies to put all necessary arrangements in place for the smooth take off of the SIM registration, which is aimed at improving security in the country.  The commission had said that valid identification documents like E- Passports, corporate/company or work place identity cards that has Pension Identification /Tax Numbers,  student ID cards from recognized institutions  as well as drivers licenses issued by the Federal Road Safety Commission, (FRSC) and  E-Tax cards, would be required for those seeking registration of their SIM cards.

The NCC’s statement signed by its Head, Media and Public Relations, Mr. Reuben Mouka, read in part: “With effect from March 1, 2010, all new SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) Cards in Nigeria must be registered before activation. “The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, in exercise of its regulatory functions as provided for by the Nigerian Communications Act (NCA) 2003, wishes to inform the general public and all the relevant stakeholders that arrangements have been concluded for the commencement of registration of all SIM Card Holders in Nigeria.

“The registration process will include the capture of the photograph and biometrics of the subscriber. Proxy registration shall be restricted to the direct families of persons seeking registration. The Commission has directed all telecom operating companies to put all necessary arrangements in place for the smooth take off of the exercise.”

NCC said “The SIM card registration is in line with complaints the commission had gotten that mobile phones are used to aid crimes and government has instructed the commission to adopt a mode to help stop crime.”

“Nigeria does not have an effective database and that is why we think six months is enough to cover the six geo-political zones in the country and even get to the local government areas,” the commission said.

WHEN STAKEHOLDERS BRAINSTORMED THE IDEA

The idea of registering all pre-paid SIM cards, Sunday Trust gathered, was first mooted by NCC as a result of series of complaints by security agencies expressing concern about the use of mobile phones to com-

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