NIMC Misquoted on 'National ID to Replace PVC in 2019' -Ogbonna

The management of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has refuted reports on some national dailies and online platforms (CommunicationsWeek excluded), that the National identity card will replace the permanent voter's card (PvC).

Mr. Loveday Ogbonna, head, Corporate Communications Unit at NIMC in a press release Friday night, said that the purported report claims that the Delta state coordinator of NIMC made the announcement while paying a courtesy call on a traditional ruler in the state.

The attention of management of the National Identity Management Commission has been drawn to a publication in...newspapers (online) and carried by several blogs/news websites with the caption 'National ID Card To Replace INEC Voters Cards in 2019'.

Ogbonna said, "The report claims that the Delta state coordinator of NIMC made the announcement while paying a courtesy call on a traditional ruler in the state.

"Management wishes to state that the said headline is false and that our State Coordinator was quoted out of context by the reporter".

He said that the electronic ID Card issued by NIMC has a number of applets built into it, which makes it capable and available for use in up to thirteen use cases and scenarios, "but at no time during the advocacy visit by our Delta state team to the royal father did the state coordinator announce that the eID Card will replace the voters card presently issued and used for elections by INEC.

"The state coordinator did not grant any press briefing or interviews during the visit, neither was she at the palace to make any announcement concerning any elections".

Ogbonna explained further that the primary reason for the visit was to seek the support of the royal father in the renewed drive by the new DG of NIMC Engr. Aliyu Abubakar Aziz to increase the number of enrolment for the National Identification Number (NIN) and brief him on the collaboration between NIMC and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to uniquely register and issue NIN to farmers in Delta state under the National Agricultural Payment Initiative (NAPI).

"The NIMC and INEC are both working harmoniously with other data collecting agencies of government towards the aggregation of all citizens’ biometric data in order to achieve a single national database as directed recently by Mr President.

"That is the extent to which both Commissions of government are in partnership at the moment.

“We wish to remind our friends in the media that our doors are always open when and where they require any information as regards the National Identity Management System and NIMC," the statement read.