• Registration will continue throughout the Easter period in all centres
• Uhuru says data will be safe
Image: FILE
President Uhuru Kenyatta has said that 11 million people have so far been registered for Huduma Namba 16 days after the launch.
He made the comment on Friday through the State House Twitter account.
Uhuru also said registration will go on throughout the Easter period in all centres.
Huduma Namba will be Kenya’s first digital integrated record of citizen data.
President Kenyatta also sought to allay fears of data privacy breaches on the system, saying the National Integrated Identity Management System guards the integrity of government’s data better than the manual system.
His comments come a day after Communications Authority director general Francis Wangusi threatened dire consequences for those who fail to register for Huduma Namba.
He said they would have their SIM cards switched off.
The government denied the claim.
State House chief of Staff Nzioka Waita said, “For the avoidance of doubt, Huduma Number Registration is a voluntary exercise in compliance with the ruling of the courts. There is no directive from the Government to institute any punitive measures against those who don’t register. More emphasis will be laid on civic education."
Among the other punitive measures suggested by the authority included blocking access to M-Pesa, Airtel Money and ATMs.
Registration for Huduma Namba runs for 45 days with the deadline being May 17.