Technology consultant, Maximus Ametorgoh, has strongly opposed the proposal by Sam George, the Minister-Designate for Communication, Digital Technology, and Innovation, to initiate another round of SIM card re-registration in Ghana.
He argues that the move is unnecessary and ineffective in addressing the root causes of fraud and crime in the country.
Sam George, the Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram, made the proposal during his vetting by the Appointments Committee of Parliament on Thursday, January 30, 2025.
He highlighted the flaws in the previous SIM card registration process, criticising the former government for subjecting citizens to long queues and wasting productive hours.
The minister-designate proposed a more streamlined approach under his administration, where the databases of Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) would be cross-referenced with the National Identification Authority’s data and other biometric systems. Only individuals with discrepancies in their records would be required to visit MNO offices for re-registration.
However, Ametorgoh, speaking on Joy News on Monday, February 3, 2025, dismissed the proposal as insufficient to tackle the underlying issues.
He emphasised that the problem lies not in the lack of registration, but in the implementation and regulation of existing systems.
“For me, it comes down to the fact that there are people who have been registered with national ID cards and we cannot locate them. I don’t think it is different from what is known. Somebody comes to your house and you have a CCTV camera that captures his or her face, but you can’t find where the person is located.
“So, our addressing system is one thing that we have also looked at. So, for me, it is not just the fact that we can identify people by registering them time and again. Where do they live and what is their mobility structure? If I live in Tema and I register my sim card over there and I move to Dansoman and something happens, how do you trace me to my new address or location?
“So, it is more about the implementation of the regulation than just re-registering me. So, for me, I don’t think we need a sim re-registration to register every Ghanaian who uses a telecom service again for us to know their location when a crime is committed.
“If we can’t address the current arrangement, I don’t think we can do it with whatever technology the minister is proposing, ” he stated.
“A proper sim card re-registration will be done” – Sam George
