Concerns over Disruption of National Identity Scheme as Workers’ Debts Mount

•NIMC says no threat to programme

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

There were indications yesterday that the continuation of the federal government’s national identity programme may be under threat, following mounting debts owed Front End Partners (FEP), running into about 24 months.

THISDAY learnt that the challenge arose over the failure by the National Identity Management Commission, (NIMC)  to pay the outstanding debts owed its partners that were recruited in January 2020 to make the process seamless nationwide.

Some of the workers who were deployed to complement the NIMC, said they  were engaged when the federal government discovered that the NIMC outlets could not meet the target of enrolment of over 200 million Nigerians.

A number of them who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear they could be victimised, said many of them borrowed money from banks to procure machines for the job, but said that the banks are now on their necks for debt settlement.

According to the disgruntled partners, despite the deal wherein  they were meant to be paid monthly, only six months were offset in 2021, after which the NIMC stopped paying.

According to a leader of the group, since January 2022, whereas the front-end workers had been working, not a kobo had been paid to them.

The NIMC partner said the idea of engaging them came because the offices of NIMC scattered across the country weren’t getting reasonable results, while the cost of enrolment in the centres were prohibitive.

“Some people were paying N5,000, some were paying N10,000, whereas officially enrolment should cost nothing. So, in the wisdom of the previous management, they asked the partners to start to do it and that nobody was expected to charge any money.  They were supposed to pay them on a monthly basis.

 “This is November that we are speaking, which could dovetail into December to make it exactly two years that the government refused to pay one dime to the front-end workers.

“The implication of this is that many people have invested, they took loans from small-scale finance banks to buy the equipment and machines and they were doing enrolment, ” the angry partner stressed.

However, an employee of the NIMC national head office in Abuja said that there was an understanding to pay the partners by the  immediate past Director General of the agency, Aliyu Azeez, who  had given his commitment to offset the outstanding payment.

But the employer stressed that the new Director General,  Abisoye-Coker  Odusote stopped the payment in order to carry out what she termed a ‘revalidation process’.

“Nothing is working, it is only our NIMC offices that are doing enrolment and we have gone back to that problematic period of people queueing  and rushing because there are limited  locations for them.

“We thought that was resolved but we have come back to that era. Well, the management is saying that they want to revalidate some people,” the source added, saying that the implication of shutting down the front end partners is that NIMC officials are now overwhelmed.

“We want to believe that when they finish this  revalidation process, the job will continue because two months is a long time. This shutdown has been on since October, we are in November now. So, if they don’t open by December, we have lost three months of enrolment.

“When you don’t enrol, people that want to get their international passports can’t do it because they need NIN. They will be the ones that will be rushing to the outlets of NIMC and most of our outlets aren’t really doing much,” it added.

In a reaction, the Special Adviser on Media to the CEO of NIMC, Mr. Ayodele Babalola, dismissed insinuations that there were threats to the enrolment programme.

He stated that the new management was carrying out the revalidation of the NIMC partners to  ensure the highest standards of data security and compliance were complied with.

 “The NIN project is not under any threat because enrolment is still ongoing at NIMC’s state and local government offices across the federation.

“The revalidation exercise of the FEPs is in line with efforts to ensure a more secure NIN registration and modification process and also part of NIMC’s commitment to ensuring the highest standards of data security and compliance.

“The exercise would also ensure seamless and secured NIN enrolment and modification services as well as complete elimination of infractions,” he stated.

According to him, all necessary machinery were being put in place to ensure the quick conclusion of the process.