In light of the NCC's directive on SIMs and NINs, I'm going to bring back a few pieces I've written for @StearsBusiness about the Nigerian government's slapdash approach to ID management.

First, I examine why we keep duplicating registration efforts https://www.stearsng.com/opinion/shock-value/nigerias-id-cards-and-ego-i

But why do we need a NIN in the first place?

How do we benefit from registration compliance? And just as importantly, how can this be abused? https://www.stearsng.com/opinion/shock-value/nigerias-id-cards-and-ego-ii

And finally, let's look at a similar instance of the government flexing its muscles in this arena: when the CBN wanted to seize money in bank accounts not linked to a BVN. https://www.stearsng.com/opinion/shock-value/to-bvn-or-not-to-bvn

All these show one thing: the Nigerian government excels at majoring in minors.

We don't do the basics like a census to know how many Nigerians there are, or comprehensive birth and death registration.

Instead, we keep requiring the same set of people to jump through hoops.