“Thus, if there are 43 million Nigerians with NINs, this could account for about 172 million SIMs already linked to NINs,” Mr. Aside said.
The official said the new improved NIN slip is pocket friendly and an easy to verify version.
The controversial deadline was set last week Tuesday.
Only 42 million Nigerians have obtained NIN since the national database programme commenced over a decade ago.
Mr. Elumelu said the directive may lead people to stampede in the process of rushing to get registered.
The move could expose citizens’ private data, including biometric information, to entities without a track record in handling sensitive material.
