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The saying that ‘crime thrives in an environment of anonymity’ holds true in Nigeria, where government doesn’t have a national identity database of its citizens.
The Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC), which regulates the telecom industry, took a drastic measure to protect the over 80 million Global System for Mobile (GSM) subscribers by spearheading the commencement of Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) cards registration on May 1st. The exercise, according to the regulatory body, started with new SIM card buyers and subsequently will be extended to existing SIM card holders to eliminate bottlenecks and give room for adequate preparation.
“From May 1st, 2010 till infinity, no SIM card will be issued by the operators without it being registered. So, even, if you buy a SIM card today and it is not registered, at some point it must be registered or it will not work,” said Reuben Muoka, spokesman for the NCC. He explained that the registration is exclusively for new SIM cards and is done by the operators. “This registration is for new SIM cards, so it is the operators that are registering and they are doing it as people come to buy the SIM cards; and it is the biometric details of the prospective subscribers that are captured - fingerprints, digital photographs and so on. So, it is simplified,” Muoka explained.
The major operators, who had earlier opposed the initiative through their expression of apprehension over a reduction in revenue and subscriber base, are pushing the blame for slow implementation of the programme on the NCC. However, Etisalat started calling its subscribers about a month ago, demanding their particulars from them. Zain spokesman, Emeka Oparah, said the company has started the programme, adding that it is the responsibility of the NCC to disseminate information about the exercise to members of the public.
Visafone sends a message to its subscribers that reads “Dear customer, as mandated by the NCC, when you purchase a new Visafone SIM, your fingerprint and photograph will be captured at the shop to register your line.” MTN’s message equally reads “Join the winning team. Register your MTN SIM at the nearest MTN Registration Centre”. Other networks are also following suit.
But there are fears that the exercise may fail if the NCC and the operators fail to tidy up modalities for the implementation of the initiative. Already, the registration appears not to be taking place as it has remained “business as usual” with hawkers of SIM cards still having a field day across the country. Besides, many of the subscribers said they are not aware of the initiative as their service providers have not done anything to enlighten them.
Asked about the poor publicity the initiative has received so far, Muoka said the operators ought to have driven the publicity aspect as this first phase is for them, while the second phase (registration of existing subscribers) is for the NCC, which has already contracted a firm to do it.
But Oparah said the NCC has the responsibility to create awareness for the process. “The NCC is the owner and driver of the process. While the operators will manage the registration of new subscribers, which we have started, the NCC will handle the registration of existing customers. The NCC has announced that it will commence the scheme on August 1st,” he said.
A man who sells both recharge and SIM cards in Ikeja, Lagos, expressed shock when he was asked if he collects personal information from the people that have been coming to buy such cards from him. The middle-aged man, who simply identified himself as Kola, said he has sold so many lines in the last one week, adding that all he does is sell the SIM card and gets it activated for them. “I don’t know anything about registration. What I do here is sell my card, activate it for the buyer, and that is all,” he explained.
According to the NCC, some of the personal information to be provided by a subscriber are e-passports, corporate/company or workplace identity cards that have pension identification/tax numbers, student ID cards from recognised institutions, driver’s licence issued by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and e-tax cards. It said further that the process will include the capture of the photograph and biometrics of the subscriber, adding that “proxy registration shall be restricted to the direct families of persons seeking registration.
“In the case of existing SIM card holders, necessary processes and procedures are currently being put in place to guarantee a smooth registration exercise. The general public and all relevant stakeholders will be notified in due course about the timing and how to proceed.”
Former NCC Vice-Chairman, Ernest Ndukwe, had said registering SIM cards was necessary to prevent the harassment many Nigerians go through in the hands of people using mobile phones to perpetrate crime, but stressed the need for public awareness. According to him, the major hurdle in the way of the project is lack of an effective Identity Management System, adding that arrangements have been made to support the process of registration to enable SIM card holders in the rural areas to be registered.
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But there are fears that the exercise may fail if the NCC and the operators fail to tidy up modalities for the implementation of the initiative. Already, the registration appears not to be taking place as it has remained “business as usual” with hawkers of SIM cards still having a field day across the country. Besides, many of the subscribers said they are not aware of the initiative as their service providers have not done anything to enlighten them.
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