The Director-General of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Abisoye Coker-Odusote, has explained why kidnappers and terrorists are not always traceable through the National Identification Number (NIN) system despite its role in Nigeria’s security architecture.
Speaking during an interview on Sunday Politics on Channels Television, Coker-Odusote said criminal elements often evade detection by using mobile phones and SIM cards belonging to their victims rather than their own registered lines.
According to her, the NIN remains a foundational component of Nigeria’s identity and security framework, but the tactics employed by criminals can complicate efforts to trace them.
“We already know the NIN is the foundational identity for the security architecture, but a lot of the time, you find out the kidnappers use the phones of the people they have abducted, which means how do you trace them because they are not using their own phones?” she said.
Coker-Odusote also noted that there are theories suggesting that some perpetrators may be brought into the country shortly before carrying out criminal operations, making it difficult for them to appear in existing identity databases.
While stressing that she was not making any definitive claim, she said such scenarios could present additional challenges for security agencies relying on identity records.
The NIN is an 11-digit unique identity number issued by NIMC to Nigerians and legal residents under the National Identity Management Commission Act, 2007. It serves as the country’s foundational digital identity and is used for verification across a range of government and private sector services.
As part of efforts to strengthen national security, the Federal Government has made NIN-SIM linkage mandatory to improve identity verification, support investigations and curb criminal activities.
The NIN is also required for services including passport applications, bank account opening, driver’s licence processing and access to various government programmes.
However, NIMC has consistently maintained that the NIN is primarily an identity management tool and not a surveillance system. The commission noted that tracking criminal activities requires collaboration among security agencies, telecommunications operators and other relevant institutions.
Coker-Odusote reiterated the importance of the NIN in strengthening national security while acknowledging that criminal tactics continue to pose challenges to law enforcement efforts.
