Minister Designate for Communications, Digital Technology and Innovations, Sam Nartey George has disclosed that SIM card re-registration will be conducted again.
Speaking during his vetting before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Thursday, January 30, the Ningo-Prampram MP underscored the shortcomings of the sim card registration process.
He criticised the previous government for what he terms a wicked and unfair subjection of individuals to long queues thereby wasting productive man hours just for a sim card registration.
Sam George revealed that during his administration, the database of Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) will be cross-referenced with the National Identification Authority’s data and all other biometric databases and it is only when there are disparities will individuals be required to visit the MNO offices for sim re-registration.
“The actions that happened under the last government were very at par with common sense and logic. We have a National Identification Authority that holds and sits as our national repository of biometric data. I think it was wickedness to the highest order to subject Ghanaians to long hours of queue, taking away productive man hours and affecting our economy to go and queue again and resubmit biometrics simply because egos could not be managed.
“We will do a proper sim re-registration exercise again but this time, nobody is going to queue. Because common sense will prevail, expertise will prevail and logic will work.
“The MNOs hold a certain set of dates. We will use technology to cross-reference that against the NIA’s database and all biometric databases and only instances where there is a disparity would require you to visit an MNO shop.
“Because today, as we speak, the telcos cannot truly verify who is holding their sim car. It is even in their own benefit for us to do this process and do it properly,” he stated.
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