Why kidnappings, killings have continued despite Sim/NIN linkage – NIMC DG
The Director General (DG) of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Engr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote, says that rampant killings and kidnapping have continued to aggravate in the country because hoodlums succeeded in circumventing previous engagements and directives requiring people to use the NIN to register their Sim cards across the country.
The DG stated this while responding to questions at an annual consultation workshop with stakeholders organized by ID4D in partnership with other partners in Abuja.
Represented by her Technical Assistant, Ayobami Zainab Abiola, Odusote noted that previous directives requiring people to use the NIN to register their Sim cards were manipulated by some criminal elements, hence the rise in recent killings and kidnappings.
According to her, ‘‘NIMC is assisting the government to curb rampant killings and kidnappings. NIMC is working with security agencies to ensure we use the NIN in a way that secures the country. There have been previous engagements and directives requiring people to use the NIN to register their SIM cards; however, people have in some cases tried to circumvent that, and this is to the detriment of using this information for security purposes’’.
Odusote, however, informed that the NIMC is working very closely with security agencies to plug all of these holes, having been able to locate these loopholes in the process being exploited by hoodlums.
‘‘We are also working, not with the security agencies, but with the NCC and MNOs, to plug these holes in the things that are happening at the backend. We are working hard to see great improvement on that’’. She said.
On the registration of foreigners, the DG said, “These are things people have been able to exploit due to the porosity of the borders and because certain people are not doing the checks required to ensure that the person that has been captured is a citizen. This is also part of the holistic process the DG is working on, and that is part of what is going to be addressed at a retreat holding in Nasarawa’’.
Meanwhile, the federal government has assured that no Nigerian, irrespective of sex, age, location, residency, or physical status, is denied the right to a verifiable ID. It said this is so because a robust identity system serves as the cornerstone for building a more secure, sustainable, and prosperous Nigeria.
In her keynote address, the DG gave the assurance that the government is aware that access to a reliable identity is not a privilege but a fundamental right and therefore would do everything possible to provide access to every Nigerian citizen and legal resident.
