There are indications that a hitch in the network of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) will cause a delay in the registration and linkage of NIN to SIM card records.
It was gathered that Nigerians who register for National Identity Number (NIN) have been given one week to collect their numbers as against one or two days previously given to them.
NIMC had issued an October 31, 2021 deadline for customers to link their NIN to phone numbers or risk being barred from using their telephone lines.
A top source at NIMC said, “You can still register for the NIN as a new customer but you cannot generate NIN as quickly as you could in the past. This is because of the rush for registration and the pressure on our system.”
A source who spoke to The PUNCH said the system has been overwhelmed, leading to a slowing down in the verification of NIN.
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According to the source, some expatriates have been engaged to examine the problem but lack of funding had delayed the rectification of the issue.
It was also gathered that though over 104 million people had submitted their NIN for verification, only 70 million numbers of have been verified.
This represents a shortfall of about 120 million subscribers as industry data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) showed that there are over 190 million subscribers.
Another source at the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) said, “In our letter, we told the government that there has not been significant enrollment. Enrolment is slow, we hope the government will consider the extension so that a lot of people won’t be disenfranchised.
“In the month of September, only 6.2 million subscribers that submitted their NINs were completely verified. About 104 million people have successfully submitted their NINs for verification.”
