The House of Representatives has called for a 10-week extension of Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) card registration with the National Identification Number (NIN) to allow Nigerians enough time to participate.

Minority Leader Ndudi Elumelu (PDP-Delta) on Wednesday in Abuja moved the motion on the need for the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) to give Nigerians reasonable time to submit their NIN for SIM registration.

Mr. Elumelu said that the two-week deadline given by the NCC for all Nigerians to register would bring untold hardship.

He said that though the idea of SIM registration with NIN was a noble and laudable exercise, the two-week deadline would not augur well.

The timing was wrong because Nigerians had not been properly sensitised, as only a few educated persons who bothered to read the dailies might have heard about such instructions, Mr. Elumelu argued.

“Therefore, trying to enforce this policy in a period where most Nigerians are gearing up for Christmas festivities may lead to stampede in the process of rushing to get registered,’’ he said.

This, according to him, can lead to unnecessary death and injuries and if the NCC is allowed to carry out this directive, it will bring untold hardship.

Mr. Elumelu said that millions of subscribers would be disconnected this yuletide which could cause more pains, hence the need to halt the plan.

He said that if the NCC was not urgently called to halt its plans, there could also be unnecessary panic in the country, saying that it could lead to exploitation of vulnerable Nigerians.

The house, therefore, called on the NCC to give 10 weeks to enable Nigerians meet with the instruction of submitting their NIN to service providers and not the two weeks given.

The minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Patami, had stated that any telecom subscriber who failed to submit NIN to its network provider within two weeks would be blocked from December 31.