▪︎Obtaining a SIM card optional, NIN is mandatory
Nigerians who fail to obtain their National Identity Number (NIN) risk seven or 14 years imprisonment, the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, said in Abuja on Thursday.
He said: “Those who have yet to obtain their NIN, risk seven or 14 years imprisonment as stipulated by the Nigerian Constitution.”
According to him, “while obtaining a SIM card maybe optional, NIN is mandatory.’’
He spoke at the 6th edition of the ministerial briefings organised by the Presidential Media Team at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.
The minister said that a lot of transactions in the country were not supposed to be carried out without NIN including opening of a bank account, tax payment, among others.
He stated that as of March 31, 2021, more than 51 million NINs have been fully enrolled while 189 million Subscriber Identification Modules (SIMs) have so far been registered.
Read him: “Out of this, 150 million have completed registration while others have problems of improper registration.’’
Pantami said NIN would show the total number of Nigerians that have registered.
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