Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia state has charged Abians to register in the National Identity Card project so as to obtain the multifunctional electronic identity card which would help government in planning for the economic benefit of its citizenry.
Speaking during the formal presentation of the National Identity Card to him at Government House, Umuahia, by officials of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) in Abia, the Governor said the event has put to rest the numerous rumours concerning the efficacy of the National Identity project.
Governor Ikpeazu, while stressing the importance of the multifunctional electronic identity card, said government would require inputs from the robust data already in the data base of the NIMC to enable it plan for the socioeconomic development of the teeming Abia populace.
He expressed his delight at the prospects and features of the card as he noted the importance of data with regard to planning, social care and economic development of a people as well as crime prevention and control.
He commended the efforts of the National Indentity Management Commission (NIMC) for the robust planning put in place and also the depth reached in trying to mobilise Abians to register for their national identity card adding that the Deputy Governor, Rt. Hon. Sir Ude Oko Chukwu, is heading a strong committee charged with the responsibility of ensuring that Abians register in their numbers within the shortest possible time.
Ikpeazu said his administration will support the commission to ensure the success of their assignment in the state and thereby called on Abians and Nigerians to embrace and see it as their own.
Earlier while presenting the national identity card to the Governor, the leader of the NIMC delegation, Mr Loveday Chika Ogbonna, said that number of registered Abians on the scheme is not encouraging. While urging them to key into the project, he said with the card’s rich database, government would be able to allocate resources and plan government services for the citizenry more effectively.
Mr Ogbonna revealed that the multifunctional electronic identity card would among other things enable the user to make purchases online, adding that the card, if preloaded can take up to five million naira and can be used both within and outside the country.
