Nigeria: FG dumps Plastic National Identity Card for Digital Identification

Published: 13/Aug/2020
Source: Vanguard (Abuja)

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru – Abuja

The Federal Government on Thursday announced that it was opting for a digital national identification card instead of the present plastic card. The Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola, who disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents shortly after he submitted the report of the committee on Citizen Data Management and Harmonization to President Muhammadu Buhari said that the digital identification will be domiciled with the National Identity Management Commission, NIMC office.

He said, “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.”

Also speaking, the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Isa Patami, explained that the priority of the federal government was on the digital identity card. According to him, “What the chairman (Aregbesola) 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 digital ID, it will be attached to your database wherever you are. So if you can memorize it by heart, wherever you go that central database domiciled with NIMC will be able to provide the number and every one of your data will be provided.
Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2020/08/fg-dumps-plastic-national-identity-card-for-digital-identification/
Themes: ID Documents and Passports
Regions: Nigeria
Year: 2020