NIA Ghana and the hidden ordeals in the country l By Dr. Sinto B Abdulai

The National Identification Authority (NIA) was set up in 2003 under the Office of the President with the mandate to issue national ID cards and manage the National Identification System (NIS). This resulted in the passing of the NIA Act, 2006 (Act 707) to give it the necessary legal premises on which to operate.

In consonance with that the government under H.E Nana Addo has brought a loud applause policy to bring more than 30million Ghanaians under one database with one unique ID which will recognize you as a Ghanaian anywhere you are in the world, notwithstanding your sex and complexion, and NIA started its mass registration on 29th April, 2019.

With the importance tag  to it, Ghanaians from all works of life are patronising it whole hearted, and the upper west region which has just ended with hers' is no exception despite the fact that there were some few challenges from machine errors to officials inhumane activities.

Some machine challenges were as the result of poor trained personnel, as I observed, because their mode used in picking and selecting them is questionable in the upper west region, thus, while the exams was on going some persons were receiving text messages or phone calls that the next day they should come for training hmm!

 During NIA card process, the personnel esoterical speeches has created tumult in most centers thereby turning away most people who came to register.

What buggers my mind is when the personnel began selling the forms to individuals for money before registering them which was against the rules and regulations given to them at the training or they filled them to friends, brothers and sisters overnight, also sell them to other people for GHC20 and when the next day come, they register twenty (20) people and they say the forms are finish meanwhile still registering for their business partners and eam, this created eye saws at most centers, some of this matters must be investigated to bring perpetrators to justice.

Some of the squalling ordeals may have been prevented if they were many centers in each region they go, if each polling station should have been given NIA personnel this would have saved decrepitude from been in-subordinated in the process.
One cannot end without mentioning the bogus requirements before you register for the Ghana card, when you go to our villages how many people know when they were born talk less of having birth certificates? So when birth certificates is a major requirement you drive away our illiterate villagers despite the fact that one can vouch for the other, by then how many people would have the card ready, just few, because you register and wait for one(1) week or more for the card.

I believe that if proper measures are put to check crime recipe personnel activities and also recruiting more officers to create more centers where people can go freely without passing through rattles which will make people reduce resorting to unlawful means of getting Ghana card.

sinto stands for justice

 BY SINTO BALURI ABDULAI, a concern member of the upper west region.
TEL: 0554701987
AKA Dr. Sinto