The Nation Newspaper

Tag: eID

  • Yusuf felicitates Muslims on Eid, seeks unity

    Yusuf felicitates Muslims on Eid, seeks unity

    The Baba Adeen of Alimosho Federal Constituency, Hon. Bisi Yusuf, has extended greetings to the Muslim faithful as they celebrate Eid-el-Fitr, marking the conclusion of the holy month of Ramadan.

    In his Eid message titled: “Eid Mubarak!”, Yusuf emphasised the enduring blessings of Ramadan and expressed optimism the prayers offered during the sacred period would bring divine favor to individuals, families, and the nation.

    “The prayers we made, for ourselves, our families, and our great nation will not go unanswered, In Sha Allah,”  Yusuf assured.

    He further urged Muslims to continue upholding the core values of Ramadan, including peace, love, patience, and charity, stressing that these principles are essential in fostering unity and driving national progress.

    He said: “By lifting one another, strengthening our communities, and working for national progress, we bring positive change to our land.” 

    Read Also: Ajadi preaches selflessness at Eid-el-Fitr

    Yusuf also prayed for the prosperity of Nigeria and divine guidance for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as he steers the country toward a brighter future.

    “May Allah bless our dear nation and guide President Tinubu as he leads us toward a brighter and greater Nigeria,” he added.

    The three-term member of the Lagos Assembly concluded his message with a heartfelt Eid greeting to all Muslims, Barka Da Sallah!

  • Eid-el-Kabir: Masari felicitates with Muslims

    Governor Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina State has felicitated with Muslims over the Eid-el Kabir, urging for more sacrifice and obedience to leaders in the true spirit of the religious occasion.
    In a statement issued by the senior special Adviser mallam Abdu Labaran and available to the Nation, said religious occasions were moments which citizens should use for both merriment and sober reflection for the advancement of the society.
    “For Muslims across the globe the importance of the Eid-el Kabir cannot be over emphasised, as it signifies sacrifice and unquestioned obedience to the command of Allah (SWT) by Prophet Ibrahim( AS).
    “For us in Nigeria, regardless of creed, the significance of the lesson of the occasion cannot be more poignant, coming at a time when our nation requires from each of us the the twin virtues of sacrifice and obedience.
    “It is a time for us to pause and reflect where we are coming from, where we are, where we are heading and how we intend to get there.
    “There is no doubt that Nigeria is facing serious challenges which the leadership under President Muhammadu Buhari is pulling out all the stops to address. The APC administration means well for all Nigerian citizens.
    “It’s therefore incumbent on all well meaning citizens to assist the leadership to successfully navigate the country out of the dire straits in every positive way we can.
    “We must not allow differences in religion, region and ethnicity be used by those averse to the advancement of the nation to devide us.
    “We must resist, reject and renounce politics of negative instincts, and put a distance between us and the proponents and promoters of such divisive tendencies, as their interest is at variance with the nation’s”.
    “Therefore, in all we do and say, we must always put national above other considerations, this is the pillar upon which the foundation for strong and sustainable societies are built.
  • Muslim faithful mark Eid in Ibadan amid tight security

    Muslim faithful mark Eid in Ibadan amid tight security

    •Downpour stalls prayers in Bauchi

    Islamic prayer to mark the end of holy month of Raman fasting  in different parts of Ibadan witnessed large turnout of Muslim faithful amid tight security yesterday.

    Stern-looking policemen and other sister security agents, including Civil Defence and plain cloth state security agents were observed in most of the praying grounds across the city and environs.

    Commissioner of Police Abiodun Odude had on Friday told reporterswhen he visited the Oyo State Chief Judge, Justice M.L. Abimbola, that his men had been posted to strategic areas to forestall breach of the peace during and after the Eid-Fitiri celebration.

    In all the praying ground visited yesterday, there was peaceful conduct of prayers by Muslim faithful who trooped enmass as early as 9am to supplicate to God for the successful end of the fasting period.

    The Chief Imam of Ibadanland , Sheik Busari Agbotomojekere, who led prayer at the Yidi praying ground at Agodi , Ibadan, prayed for the unity of the country and President Muhammadu  Buhari .

    In Bauchi, heavy downpour in the early hours yesterday prevented teeming Muslim faithful in the metropolis from performing congregation prayers.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the rainfall, which started at about 8am, lasted about  two hours, taking worshipers that had already arrived at open prayer grounds, by surprise.

    As it intensified, worshipers had to seek refuge in nearby buildings and tents, most of them, soaked in their new Sallah attires.

    When the rainfall subsided, most of them, particular women and children,  returned home. Few others sought for alternative places where the prayers were delayed.

  • ‘eID Card will stem fraudulent activities’

    ‘eID Card will stem fraudulent activities’

    As part of the pilot phase, NIMC has started to issue identify cards with MasterCard’s electronic payments functionality, which raised eyebrows among stakeholders in the IT and financial sectors of the economy.

    Speaking in Lagos during a media roundtable, Director General, NIMC, Chris Onyemenam, said the eID Card is capable of detecting fraudulent activities, adding that MasterCard was engaged to only provide the payments technology on the eID, in accordance with international standard.

    He explained that the commission hopes to register about 100 million Nigerians, adding that what NIMC is doing is identity management, to avoid duplication of efforts and waste of scarce resources carried out in the past.

    He noted that other agencies of government involved in the capturing of biometrics of Nigerians are merely issuing identity cards and not identity management.

    He pointed out that identity management enables Nigerians to update their biometrics whenever the need arises, as it is a continuous process.

    He said: “We are talking about a situation, for instance, where  as a single lady was enrolled and tomorrow she gets married, she can go to a particular location and update the information about herself.

    “Identity management is about being able to affirm or assert your identity. It is not just about issuance of cards.

    “Cards can be obtained at the road side business centres or cyber cafes. This is not what we are talking about.”

    Onyemenam said a harmonisation, implementation and integration committee has been set up to streamline the data from relevant government agencies such as the Federal Road Safety Commission, the Police, Independent National Electoral Commission, National Population Commission, Nigerian Immigration Service, among others.

    On the funding of the project by the Federal Government, the Director General of NIMC said N30 billion had been released for its initial take-off over a period of three years.

    On  how MasterCard was selected for the programme, the DG said, “MasterCard presented it’s payments solution and business proposal to NIMC for the National eID Card business together with other card schemes and companies. The three popular schemes, approved and licenced by the Central Bank to operate in Nigeria and with significant business relationship with the Nigerian deposit money banks,  we’re invited to submit proposals to NIMC. The most responsive and willing vendors was MasterCard”.

  • Unified Payments gets nod to process National eID cards

    Unified Payments said it iscommitted to the processing of payment application in the new National Electronic ID Card (eID) issued by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC).

    Unified Payments is a payment transaction processing company owned by Nigerian banks.

    In a statement, the Unified Payments said its role in the project is to further demonstrate its leadership position in the e-payment industry.

    It explained that with the eID card, Nigerians will have the ability to deposit funds, receive social benefits, pay for goods and services at merchant locations within and outside the country, as well as draw cash from Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) around the world.

    Under the processing arrangement, Nigerians identity data would be hosted and managed exclusively by NIMC while payment data would be hosted and managed by Nigerian banks and Unified Payments.

    The firm’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Agada Apochi, commended NIMC for the bold step and the technological achievement, adding that the initiative would help drive financial inclusion as well as stimulate economic activities in the country.

    NIMC Director-General and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chris E. Onyemenam said Unified Payments was selected as the pilot processor of the payment aspect of the card based on its exceptional track record.

    “Being the first processor in Nigeria certified to process EMV chip cards, the first to achieve the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) certification as well as its ownership by Nigeria banks, we have to entrust them with the role of processing the payment application in the National Identity Card,” he said.

    Unified Payment Services Limited otherwise known as Unified Payments is a card-neutral and option-neutral payments service provider founded in 1997 and owned by a consortium of Nigerian banks.