The Strategic Thinkers Network-Africa (STRANEK-Africa) has urged the government to review the decision to use only the Ghana Card as a form of identify for the Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) card re-registration exercise.
“Ghana Card has an electronic passport on it which will be used as passport to West African countries and foreign travels in future and since Ghana is not there yet, it has been pondering how Ghana Card is the only card to re-register SIM cards,” it said.
The Network asked the Ministry of Communications to take another look at the ongoing SIM Card re-registration exercise since there were alternatives where different IDs could be used to register.
The six-month exercise is scheduled to begin October 1, expected to take data from all SIM card users across the country with National ID card and Ghana Card, only document of identification for the exercise.
A statement by STRANEK-Africa issued in Accra said the Ministry of Communication had mistreated section 7 of Legislative Instrument 2111 which made the use of Ghana Card mandatory but not the only identity card for the purposes of registration.
It identified Passports, Driver’s licence and Ghana Post Service addresses which were not linked to physical addresses of registrants per its checks because majority of Ghanaians do not have fixed places of abode rather, highly residentially mobile.
The statement said simply presenting an ID card was mitigation but not solution to fight SIM based digital crime but there must be some form of liveliness test to accompany credential, and also another to establish true ownership of document presented.
“Such data compiled by the National Identification Authority to fight SIM based digital crime will fall flat and allow Passports, Driver’s Licence and Voters’ IDas one of the requirements for SIM card re-registration.
“The government can also rely on databases of the Driver Vehicle Licence Authority, Passport Office in addition to the database of NIA since initially, they are bedrock for most SIM registrations and registration and collection of Ghana cards should be extended to weekends to make it easier for those who cannot register or collect their cards during weekdays,” the statement said.-3news.com
