NIMC DG urges security agencies to use data system to curb crimes

The National Identity Management Commission has called on all security agencies to work in synergy toward curbing the current security challenges facing the country using Data Management systems.
The Director-General of NIMC, Aliyu Aziz, made the call in a statement issued by  Loveday Ogbonna the Head Corporate Communications of the Commission on Thursday in Abuja.
Azizi at a four-day annual exercise on Joint and multi-Agency training in Internal Security Conflict also known as “Haske Biyu” while delivering a paper titled: “Data Management and National Security in Nigeria: Challenges and Way Forward” underscored the need for security agencies to collaborate.
He urged security agencies and other relevant agencies to execute their functional responsibilities in a way that would be beneficial and strengthen the security of the country.
He also called on the security agencies to intensify efforts to secure the borders of the country, which is their primary responsibility, while NIMC works on enrolling all Nigerians and Legal Residents into the central National Identity Database.
The mandate of the NIMC include issuing identity card to create the National Identity Management System.
He noted that data management on National Security would allow for data sharing and cross referencing, provide insights for faster action and good governance and actionable information for decision making.
According to him, it will equally allow for identification and authentication avenues for individuals to assert their identity.
He said: “It is my sincere opinion that the focus and effort of security agencies should be directed at making Nigeria safe.
“The insecurity in Nigeria can only be tackled if all security agencies and relevant stakeholders in National security work in synergy to ensure that the borders are highly secured.
“Right now Nigerians are not safe; neither do they believe that the security community has the capability to make us feel better.
“Security agencies must perform their functional responsibility of manning the borders, so that NIMC will not be blamed for enrolling unlawful foreigners into the National Identity Database.”
According to him, the NIMC works in collaboration with the Nigerian Immigration Service to ensure that anyone who presents himself/herself for enrollment is indeed a Nigerian or legal Resident.
He, however, noted that one cannot rule out the fact that there were dubious persons who would always find a way to enter the country with false identity documents and present themselves as Nigerians for registration into the NIDB.
Aziz also acknowledged that no security agency could effectively shoulder the responsibility of securing the country, saying that personnel present at the border should not work independently, but embrace inter-agency relations.