The President Muhammadu Buhari Federal Government, through the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Pantami, has stated that the failure to obtain the National Identity Number, NIN, could lead to between 7 and 14 years imprisonment,
The Minister disclosed this on Thursday, in Abuja, while briefing State House Correspondents, adding that, no fewer than 51 million Nigerians have enrolled for the National Identity Number.
He spoke at the 6th edition of the Ministerial briefing, organised by the Presidential Media Team, at the Presidential Villa, in Abuja, stressing that although obtaining a Subscriber Identity Module, SIM, card is optional, it was mandatory for all citizens to enroll for the NIN.
The Minister stated that it is important for transactions in the country to be conducted with the NIN, saying that, he believes that rather than the population census, which can be manipulated, the NIN will determine the accurate number of Nigerians, because of its uniqueness and tamper-proof.
He equally announced that the aggregate registration for SIM across the country has hit 189 million, explaining that out of the figure, 150 million are completed registration, while the remaining have problems of improper registration.
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