NDC created long lines at SIM registration centers, according to Ursula Owusu-Ekuful.

Mrs.. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, the Communications Minister, has blamed the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for the long lines at SIM Card registration centers around the country.

The Ablekuma West legislator claims that previous acts by the opposition party, such as deterring its supporters from taking part in the exercise, contributed to the current situation, which has seen the Ministry prolong the March 31 deadline.

The Communications Ministry said on Tuesday that the deadline for re-registering SIM cards across the country has been postponed until July 31, 2022.

Mrs.. Owusu-Ekuful, the sector Minister, said in a statement on Tuesday that her ministry had weighed the challenges that had plagued the process since it began in October of last year.

"As of March 17, 14,091,542 SIM cards had been linked to the Ghana Card, 10,348,532 Bio-Captures had been performed, and 99,445 new SIM cards had been registered."

"It is clear that the deadline for completion of the registration of the remaining active SIM cards cannot be met due to several factors, including the fact that over 7.5 million citizens and residents have yet to obtain Ghana Cards to enable them to register their SIM cards," the press release stated.

Regardless, the Minister stated that the NDC cannot be absolved of blame.

"Even before the elections were done and this SIM card registration activity took out, I suppose in 2018 or thereabouts, the NDC advised its members not to register and boycott it," she told.

As a result, the Minister feels that "the current lineups we are seeing are directly linked to that move taken by the NDC."

"If we had all taken advantage of that chance at the time," she continued, "everyone who wanted a card would have had one by now, and we wouldn't have seen the lines."
In the meantime, the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications has applauded the Communications Ministry's move to extend the deadline.

Ken Ashigbey, the Chamber's Chief Executive Officer, told the media that the extension will make it easier for many Ghanaians to apply for the Ghana Card, which is the primary method of identification for the exercise.