NCC  Says No NIN, No access to drivers  license, passport

By Ngozi Onyeakusi—The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has threatened to deny Nigerians who do not have the National Identification Number the opportunity to acquire driviers  licences and passports.
Spokesman to the commission, Dr  Adinde, stated this at the NCC Digital Signature radio programme, which transmitted the second episode of Telecoms Consumer Town Hall on Radio (live on a radio station in Lagos to discuss benefits of NIN-SIM integration.
He also said the October 31 deadline for NIN-SIM linking had not been changed.
“Soon, people without NIN will be denied of necessary services that play vital roles in their lives including acquisition of driving licence, passport.
“NCC has reminded and urged telecoms consumers to link their NINs with their SIMs before the expiration of the deadline of October 31, 2021 set by the federal government.”
On the benefits of the NIN-SIM integration, Adinde said the exercise will significantly enhance national security.
“The exercise will significantly enhance national security as NIN is the primary identity for Nigerians. In line with federal government’s commitment to ensure that Nigeria deploys technology to improve service delivery, the NIN-SIM database will enhance citizens’ access to government services,” he added.
Adinde advised Nigerians to make use of the extension of the NIN-SIM integration exercise to October 31, 2021, to enroll with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), get their NINs and link them to their SIMs.
Also speaking on the programme, the commission’s director of consumer affairs bureau, Mr. Efosa Idehen, said phone numbers without unique identification could be used to commit crimes that remain untraceable.
The regional director of NIMC in Lagos, Funmi Opesanwo, who also spoke on the programme, said submission of NIN to a mobile network provider helps to provide a means of verifying an individual’s identity and safeguarding both identity and mobile line.
Recall that the federal government has since December 2020 insisted that registering and linking NIN to phone numbers is mandatory and ordered telecommunication service providers to disconnect subscribers who fail to comply.
It also warned that telecom service providers that fail to block SIM cards unregistered with NIN after a two-week extension in January 2021 risked withdrawal of their operational license.