By Musa Paul Feika
Opposition Member of Parliament representing Moyamba District in the Sixth Parliament, Hon. Ben Alpha Mansaray has lampooned the National Civil Registration Authority (NCRA) for its inability to ensure accessibility of the National Identification Card for Sierra Leoneans, especially for those in rural communities.
The Moyamba District Representative also highlighted the difficulties faced by people in want of the ID Cards in the Western Urban and Rural Areas, describing their designated centers as haven being turned into camping sites for people wanting the Cards.
The MP lamented on the financial constraints of citizens who have to travel from far to district and headquarter towns with limited collection centers, pointing out that most of these people come with resources that could sustain them for a day or two, but would end up exhausting those resources and in many instances could not even get the ID Cards.
“The Collection Centers in the provincial and headquarter town in the provinces are quite inadequate for the number of citizens coming from further remote areas in want of the ID Cards,” Hon. Mansaray stated.
He further pointed out that vulnerable groups including pregnant women, lactating mothers and people with disabilities are mostly affected by this inadequate collection centers as these people including the elderly would spend longer time in queues either waiting to be verified, or their photos taken or to do fresh registration, especially for first-time registrants.
Hon. Mansaray criticized NCRA for not meeting the population needs and urged the Agency to increase the number of collection centers, including mobile units to serve remote regions.
Hon. Mansaray also urged the Government of Sierra Leone to come up with a comprehensive plan for NCRA’s exercise to include the expansion of collection points to make the process more accessible and efficient so as to benefit both citizens and government.
He noted the high tension in the demand for the ID Cards due to the conditions attached for conducting business and accessing certain facilities if a citizen does not have it, and considering the tight deadline issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs which he noted is not enough time for every Sierra Leonean or people living in Sierra Leone to have an ID Card, he encouraged Government to give “an additional appreciative extension time as deadline.”
Hon. Mansaray considered the current deadline as “unrealistic” and a cause of too much pressure on the citizens to go for something they are not getting easily. Other MPs, including Hon. Dixon Momoh Roger from the ruling SLPP Bench supported the proposal.
In view of this high-level concern, Parliament is expected to invite NCRA and the supervising Ministry to present a comprehensive plan addressing the concerns raised by the Honourable Members of Parliament.