In a bid to safeguard citizens’ rights, State Minister for Internal Affairs, David Muhoozi, has called upon the Uganda Microfinance Regulatory Authority to take a firm stance against money lenders who unlawfully demand National IDs as collateral.
Minister Muhoozi emphasized that such practices are illegal and urged regulatory bodies to promptly revoke licenses of lenders engaging in such activities.
Addressing concerns during a parliamentary session on Wednesday, Minister Muhoozi said the vulnerability of individuals who are in dire financial situations, agree to surrender their National IDs as collateral.
He stressed the need for victims to report such cases to law enforcement agencies for appropriate action.
“The regulators of money lenders should strike off such persons who unlawfully retain ID cards from the record of authorized money lenders. Citizens should report such matters to the police to allow the entity handle perpetrators lawfully. Problem is, the victims are in a way perpetrators of this crime because they go to borrow and allow to be abused by giving away their IDs as collateral.” he said
Furthermore, Minister Muhoozi clarified the process of obtaining National IDs, contrasting it with the issuance of driving permits. He explained to MPs that while driving permits are instantly issued without citizenship verification, National IDs require a thorough verification process due to their significance as official identification documents.
“Driving permits are instant because there are no citizen verification. A process of reviewing the depth of family relations in Uganda and lineage is going to be automated to a given extent but where inconsistent information is provided by a person, this has to be reviewed,” said Muhoozi.
Regarding the upcoming mass enrollment exercise slated for June 2024, Minister Muhoozi reassured Ugandans that those with unexpired IDs would not be required to obtain new ones. Instead, they would have the option to renew their existing cards if desired. Additionally, he emphasized the continuous enrollment for National Identification Numbers (NINs) for individuals below the age of 16.
“Unexpired cards will be renewed if the holder of the card so desires. All processes and facilities are in place for this. There is continuous enrollment for IDs so that there is no vaccum in service delivery. Persons below the age of 16 years only acquire NINs and not cards so there is continuous enrolment for these.” he added
Minister Muhoozi reiterated the importance of National IDs as primary identification documents, emphasizing that passports cannot serve as alternatives without prior possession of a National ID
He also announced plans by NIRA to register Ugandans residing abroad during the mass enrollment exercise. This process will include online pre-registration and outreach programs in countries with significant Ugandan populations.
“The new system provides for online pre-registration and registration at embassies. NIRA will carry out outreach exercises in selected countries with a population of Ugandans exceeding 10,000”
The Minister’s remarks came amidst parliamentary inquiries into the government’s readiness for the mass enrollment exercise and the government’s commitment to enhancing the integrity of the identification system while protecting citizens’ rights.
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