From Yakubu Mustapha,Minna.
Former Military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida has commended the launch of the national identity card project embarked by the National Identification Management Commission, NIMC.
He said the project will make him a proud Nigerian.
IBB said this at his hilltop manson in Minna yesterday when the Director General of the National Identity Management Commission, (NIMC) led a management team to hand over his I.D. card to him at his residence.
“I sincerely appreciate, I am proud I have this one while I am still alive, please keep it up. And for those who have not succeeded in enrolling, try to make sure you do it fast.
“I think if there is something one should be very proud of is being a citizen. If there is something that confirms you as a citizen then is something to be proud of.
While charging Nigerians to ensure they get registered and be given their I.D. Cards, IBB commended the NIMC for their efforts saying “you will eventually get there”.
He added that these will also assist in curtailing security challenges confronting the nation as it contained all necessary information about every individuals enrolled by the commission.
Earlier in his remark, the DG of NIMC, Barrister Christ Onyemenam explained that the identity cards are now at the stage of distribution as over six million cards are ready for collection.
“We have started distribution of the cards to Nigerians nationwide. We started with Abuja, Lagos and Rivers states.
“Nigerians will get their cards before April. The Commission will send an SMS to phones and also notify Nigerians as soon as their cards are ready. Whoever gets SMS, should go to where he or she registered to collect their card.
The DG also appealed to Nigerians to guard their identity cards jealously as misplacement may mean paying some fee and proving genuinely that the card is truly lost to get a replacement.
Onyenmenam noted that the card contained payment solution as a master card used for financial transaction or services in addition to data base for identifying individuals as double registration would be dictated while internal displaced persons will be captured.
