Sim Card Registration: Mad rush for Ghana card ahead of March 31 deadline

There is no end in sight of the long queues and frustration being experienced by Ghanaians at the various National Identification Authority (NIA) centres to register or collect their National Identification Cards (Ghana card).

The mad rush for the Ghana cards is to beat the March 31, 2022, deadline set for the Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) re-registration exercise being conducted across the country by the mobile telecommunication companies which requires the use of the Ghana Card.

During a follow-up visit by the Ghanaian Times on Tuesday at Amamorley in the Ga North Municipality to find out if the situation had abated, it was observed that the queues had increased with applicants having to stand in the scorching sun to wait for their turn.

The usual canopies and chairs as well as Veronica buckets with running water, liquid soap and hand sanitiser were missing.

The young, elderly, some nursing mothers with others carrying children on their backs, were seen at the entrance of the centres waiting for their names to be mentioned according to numbers allocated to them earlier.

A chef, Adama Fuseni, said he had been at the office countless times, but had not received his card.

Madam Dorcas Nortey, a trader, said the authority should reconsider the date and extend it to the end of the year so that many people can get the opportunity to register.

“If we are not able to register for the card and the government closes registration, it will affect us. Not everybody can get the money and pay the GH¢ 100, GH¢ 150 and GH¢ 300 for premium services, I am afraid we cannot meet the deadline and we will lose our SIM cards. This is an opportunity for the poor so the government should extend the time so that we can re-register our SIM cards,” she said.

The long queues were the same at Amasaman in the Ga West Municipal, except that chairs had been provided for the elderly, pregnant women and nursing mothers.

At the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) office at Ring Road Central near the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange, Mr Derick Ababio Anim, a District Registration Officer, explained that due to the long queues the applicants were being called in batches.

He said there were about 5,000 old cards yet to be collected by the owners and urged applicants to exercise patience and follow the instructions given them.

Sharing his experience, the Editor of the Ghanaian Times, Mr David Agbenu, said despite the stress he had to go through over the last two years, he was yet to receive his Ghana card.

“I was told to go and collect my Ghana card at the Dansoman police station. There I was directed to go to the district headquarters at the Ablekuma West area.

“When I got there my finger prints were to be captured to match the data in the system but I was told there was no data on me therefore, I should proceed to the NIA’s Greater Accra Regional headquarters at Kinbu Tudu, Accra Central. Having stayed in the queue for all this while when it got to my turn I was told the machine had broken down,” Mr Agbenu lamented.

He however suggested that at least the NIA should make a provision where they can go to offices to register workers on site as another way to reduce the long queues being experienced.

Lydia Darlington Fordjour, reports from the Upper West Regional capital, Wa, that the Upper West Regional officer of the NIA, Mr Mubarik Moomin, attributed long queues at the registration centres for the Ghana card were as a result of the different services the authority had introduced to its operations.

“We are currently doing card replacement, new registration and issuance of cards and very soon we will introduce card update services for those with errors on their cards to come for correction so the queues may persist,” he stated.

Mr Moomin indicated that despite inadequate staff to attend to the huge numbers daily, issues such as interruption of network and limited office space also accounted for the long queues at the various NIA offices.

“Our office space is very small so one room is being used for two purposes; new registration and card replacement and that is why we make the people queue outside as the room cannot accommodate many of them at a time,” he said.

He gave the assurance, however, that under his supervision, the staff had devised innovative ways to ensure that everyone was served at the appropriate time.

The regional registration office has 12 offices of the NIA in the 11 municipal and district assemblies in the region yet their offices experience long queues on daily basis.

“I came to pick up my card but I have been sitting here the whole day and no one is saying anything to me yet I need to report back to school today,” laments Michael Kulla, a Senior High Student.

Some of the applicants lamented that the frustration was too much as they described the process as slow and laborious.

From the Volta Regional capital Ho, KAFUI GATI, reports that the long queues associated with the acquisition of the Ghana Card in the Ho Municipality had reduced drastically.

Mr Ernest Ahiagbe, District Registration Officer in charge of GRA Office, told the Ghanaian Times that as for the queue they cannot do without it, we are trying as much as possible to manage it.

According to him, when they started operating the office last year they tried going by appointments to avoid very long queues.

The people normally come to the office, we write their names and give them dates to come to do the cards.

When your date is due you come and we serve you.

Mr Ahiagbe explained that when they entered this year we realised that we needed to push up our capacity a bit because we were lucky enough to be given some contract staff.

“We are also working very hard and fast to finish with those with appointments so that we can take fresh ones,” he said.

Mr Godsway Amekudzi, a student, said the process has been smooth due to the measures they have put in place.

According to him, he is yet to get his Ghana Card after going through the process last week.

“The only challenge people are facing is those who have no birth certificate and have to wait for someone to guarantee for you,” he stated.

BY IGNATIUS AWUAH TANOE BLAY || Ghanaian Times