THE Federal Government has suspended some workers of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) allegedly involved in the extortion of some people seeking to register for National Identification Number.
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami ordered the suspension of these staff members who are reportedly from Bauchi and Kaduna State offices of NIMC.
Recall that the Federal Government threatened to jail any worker of NIMC caught extorting NIN applicants.
The threat was prompted by the public outcry that some workers of the commission were exploiting the rush to beat the deadline for registration by people to perpetuate fraudulent activities.
Spokesperson of the commission, Kayode Adegoke, said in a statement issued in Abuja that the act was inimical to the policy directive of the Federal Government, which required mobile network subscribers to update their Subscriber Identification Module registration with a valid NIN.
Pantami restated his zero tolerance stance on extortion, bribery and corruption, according to the statement.
He noted that such unethical practices if allowed to fester had the potency of derailing the SIM-NIN integration project.
The minister said enrolment for NIN was free of charge, adding that on no account should anyone pay to obtain an enrolment form or to have their biometrics captured.
“All personnel involved in the enrolment and NIN issuance exercise must carry out their respective duties professionally, fairly and with integrity,” the statement stated.
It added, “We wish to call on the general public to assist us in putting our commitments into action by sending proof of any nefarious activity within and around our enrolment centres.”
It urged extorted applicants to help the government address the fraudulent act by providing snapshots and other proofs.
