NIN REGISTRATION AND THE PAIN OF NIGERIAN STUDENTS

Students across the country are currently stranded and frustrated due to the poor network and slow system of the NIN registration process. Many candidates who are supposed to complete their WAEC registration are now stuck, not because they are not ready, but because the NIN system is not working efficiently.

Sadly, WAEC offline registration cannot continue without NIN verification. This has created serious tension in schools, as students are being delayed, stressed, and in some cases, may even miss their registration deadlines — all because of a system failure they did not cause.

It is painful that in a country where internet and network services are still very unreliable, the government insists on making NIN compulsory for every critical process without first fixing the system to support it. Long queues, hours of waiting, network failures, and repeated visits to registration centres have become the daily experience of students and parents.

Is it fair to punish students for the failure of government infrastructure?

If the government truly cares about education and the future of Nigerian children, there should be a better approach. Individuals should be allowed to register their NIN by themselves online, while charges can be deducted directly through their bank using OTP confirmation. This will reduce crowd, stress, extortion, and unnecessary delays at registration centres. This will reduce crowd, stress, corruption, and unnecessary delays.

Alternatively, WAEC and other examination bodies should provide temporary flexibility or extension until the NIN system becomes stable and reliable.

Nigeria must stop making policies that cause suffering to ordinary citizens, especially students who are only trying to secure their future.

Our children deserve better. Our students deserve better. Nigeria can do better.

By

Umar Adabara Abduljelil El-Okene