SYNC All National Databases Now!

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A call has gone out to relevant authorities in Nigeria to synchronize all biometric databases within its purview. And why not? For the time is nigh! There are so many statutory bodies involved in the process of data capture. As they are all actively engaged in obtaining and collating biometric data on citizens, one wonders why we still have problems with availability of data for cognate planning in all aspects of our national endeavour.

The list seems endless: commercial banks, the Nigeria Police, The Army, The Air Force, The Navy and other security agencies, The National Populations Commission, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Telecommunication Companies and educational institutions.

In other nations, you only need to have your biometric data captured once to enter the national database.... Even as a tourist or immigrant, registration in some schools or opening a bank account is enough. Better still if you manage to get yourself arrested by the Police!

As a national, you automatically get absorbed into the system once your birth is registered. It has even been suggested...albeit very intelligently....that our Telecom Systems are so automated these days that they would spontaneously generate an SMS ALERT to remind teenagers just turning 18 years to go finalize the processes of generation and retrieval of Permanent Voter Cards (PVC)....if so programmed.

So, the process of voter registration oughts to be a continuous one...and not restricted to election time!

The INEC Chairman got his salaries all of the time....not only during elections! To a lesser extent, citizens should freely visit their local government headquarters regularity to register as voters.

And these data cannot be duplicated....lending to the adjective.....biometric. This implies that it captures specific parameters of the person: his iris colour, hair colour, facial contours, fingerprints, height etc.... But with our propensity for wrongdoing, government officials see opportunities to award spurious and multiple contracts as avenues for over-invoicing and outright stealing from the fatherland.

Needless head-counts year-in year-out at warped population census provides loop-holes for the political class to falsifying figures for personal gains.....for the higher the population of a state, the higher the funds alloted to it from the federal purse!

If you watch our assemblymen argue so passionately....and throw punches....and haul chairs at one another.....on the floor of parliament, you'd be mistaken that they are so emotionally committed to the welfare of "their people". But as the allocated funds are simply shared, their boxing exploits are cued at just one thing.....self-considerations!

The same banality informs their wanton falsification of our national population data!

The trouble our people go through to retrieve their PVCs is unimaginable!

They queued to register as voters.....to obtain the Temporary Voter Cards.

They again join endless queues to obtain their PVCs...in the sun....in the rain.....

They pool money together to fuel INEC generating sets....

All this stress is absolutely unnecessary!
If Professor Jega cannot think up these things...or even grant us such a simple request after being so advised, what is he professing?

Dr Tosin Akindele is a medical practitioner and public affairs analyst.

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Articles by Tosin Akindele