Plans are underway to replace the plastic national identity cards with new digital forms of identification; this was announced yesterday by Federal Government.
This decision was contained in the report of the Citizen Data Management and Harmonisation Committee submitted to President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.
The committee, chaired by the Minister of Interior, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, was set up in February following the imposition of temporary visa restrictions on Nigerian passport holders by the United States on February 21.
During the meeting yesterday, Buhari said Nigeria was making progress in its effort to reverse the suspension of the issuance of “immigrant visas” to Nigerian passport holders, adding that two of the six areas of concern raised by the US had been addressed.
Briefing journalists after submitting the report, Aregbesola said henceforth, holding cards would only be a matter of convenience, as only the issuance or possession of identification number would be mandatory.
According to him, once a national identification number (NIN) is issued to anyone, he is already captured in the data bank domiciled with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and can be tracked anywhere.
“The card is just for convenience; the real thing is the number you have. With that number, you are on the databank. Everything about you is there. We are just upgrading it such that your DNA too will be there very soon.
“Even if you are in a car, I will know if you are the one in the car with your DNA. It’s already captured. You are already captured, you cannot run away anymore,” he said.
Minister of Digital Communications, Dr. Ali Pantami, also said the era of card issuance was gone, adding that the emphasis is now on digital identification.
The minister stressed the need for people with digital identification to comprehend their numbers, adding that the digital identification number is already introduced into the international passport issuance.
According to him, cards henceforth will only be for record purposes and hence, anyone with digital identification has all that is required for identification without having to hold a card any longer.
He said: “What the chairman is saying now is that we are no more talking about cards. The world has gone digital so that card is no more. Our priority now is the digital ID. It will be attached to your database wherever you are.
Source: This Day
