Ghanaians relax after SIM Card registration deadline extension

It is regrettable that many Ghanaians yet to link their SIM Cards with their Ghana Cards have gone back to default setting after the re-extension of the deadline.

Characteristically, they are awaiting the eleventh-hour to join long-winding queues at the various registration centers and when they are unable to meet the deadline, they would cry foul and heap all manner of invectives of the authorities in charge of the registration.

This is not right. This is not fair. This very wrong and should be condemned by every well-meaning citizen of good conscience.

It is curious that the respectable citizens and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) that were recently vocal in calls for an extension of the deadline seem to have not observed that the very persons who ought to benefit from the extension do not seem to care.

The SIM registration centers are almost empty. The newly re-extended deadline is ticking closer by the day. We are very much aware as a country that many persons are yet to get their SIM cards registered. Yet we are all silent.

There was a recent viral video that captured some influential politicians saying they would not take part in the SIM registration because they belong to a so called “Stubborn Academy”. Whatever that means…

They may be seeing this as a harmless joke. But it has a genitive influence on their followers.

When the new deadline expires and there is no extension, these same politicians would make a u-turn and blame Government and yell all manner of accusations.

The development makes it difficult to fault State authorities who were reluctant to extend the deadline.

The SIM Card registration exercise began on  October 1, 2021. It was originally scheduled to end on  March 31, 2022. When the time came, there was a public outcry that many Ghanaians were yet to register and that Government was being insensitive.

It was extended by the Minister for Communications and Digitalization, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful to  July 31, 2022.

At the threshold of the deadline, Government was compelled to extend the deadline again to  September 30, 2022.

Any SIM card that has not been registered by end of the deadline will be barred from receiving certain services, including voice and data services but from the attitude shown so far, it would be difficult to put in a word for yet another extension after September 30th.