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President Bola Tinubu has instructed the Director-General of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Aliyu Aziz, to take a 90-day pre-retirement leave, signaling his eventual retirement. The Presidency also announced the immediate appointment of Bisoye Coker-Adesote as the new DG of the agency.
This transition is seen by the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers as a potential turning point for the national identity system. They emphasized that NIMC has faced numerous challenges under the outgoing DG’s tenure.
The statement from the Presidency indicated that the outgoing DG’s leave would commence “with effect from August 24, 2023, leading to his eventual retirement from service on November 24, 2023.”
The statement further read, “The President approves the appointment of Engr. Bisoye Coker-Odusote to serve as the Acting Director-General/CEO of the National Identity Management Commission for a 90-day period, with effect from August 24, 2023, after which, a full term of four years will begin as the substantive NIMC Director-General/CEO, beginning on November 24, 2023.”
Additionally, President Tinubu approved the appointment of Hon. Yusuf Buba Yakub to head the Directorate of Technical Aid Corps, following the expiration of the tenure of the former DTAC Director/CEO, Dr. Pius Osunyikanmi. This appointment takes immediate effect.
Adeolu Ogunbanjo, the President of the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers, commented on the new appointments, stating, “He had a lot of issues which were concerns.” He highlighted that the NIN registration process faced challenges under the outgoing DG, particularly with platform capacity and managing registrations.
Ogunbanjo expressed optimism that the new DG would be better positioned to address these issues. He pointed out that over 100 million people have enrolled for NIN so far, illustrating the scale of the challenge.
Adedeji Owonibi, Founder of Convexity, shared a more balanced view, acknowledging the achievements of the former DG. He mentioned improvements in NIMC’s operations, including pioneering the use of electronic NINs and adopting blockchain technology.
Owonibi also noted the decentralization of the registration process as a positive step. This change enabled NIMC to manage a larger volume of registrations, contributing to the registration of over a hundred million individuals.
The change in leadership within NIMC is expected to bring new strategies and perspectives to address the ongoing challenges related to the National Identification Number (NIN) system.
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