The Member of Parliament for Bunkpurugu constituency Mr. Abed-Nego Azumah Bandim, has asked the National Communication Authority (NCA) to immediately rescind what he described as draconian punitive measures against persons who were yet to re-register their sim cards.
The legislator averred that the NCA was aware of the challenges some Ghanaians have in acquiring the Ghanacard which is the sole identification for the registration exercise.
”The NCA is very much aware of the challenges associated with the acquisition of the Ghana card. In fact, the NCA is well aware that millions of Ghanaians despite frantic efforts have not had their Ghana cards due to the inability of the National Identification Authority (NIA) to issue same. Yet the NCA went ahead to issue punitive measures at the instance of the sector minister, who is hell-bent on satisfying her ego rather than serving Ghanaians. Isn’t the NCA supposed to prioritize the interest of Ghanaians over that of the minister?”
He has also asked the NCA to include passports and voters’ ID cards as other forms of identification for the exercise.
”Going forward, I will recommend for the NCA to include the passport and voter’s ID as means of identification to enable Ghanaians who do not have the Ghana card yet to register their SIM Cards. Those who use the passport or voter’s ID will then be mandated to update their records upon acquiring the card. Also, the introduction of the GH SIM Card Registration App is a commendable effort. However, the cost of using the App is quite exorbitant and exploitative and should be reduced. Having introduced the self-service registration App, the NCA should have had the patience to wait and observe the initial implementation challenges that may occur using the App, before rolling out any punitive measures. ”
Read the full statement below
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana