N5000 for National ID: PDP asks Buhari to rescind decision now

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday rejected the repressive decision of the President Buhari-led All Progressives Congress (APC) Federal Government to impose a N5000 fee for the nation’s national identity cards.

In a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday by its Spokesman, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan,  the Party said that the very idea of ID card fee by the Buhari administration was “insupportable, reprehensible and completely offensive to the sensibilities of Nigerians as free citizens”.

It declared that imposing such unwarranted and unjustified levy on Nigerians, for internal social safety instrument, amounted to wicked fleecing as well as stripping of their constitutional rights in their own nation.

According to it: “Our party holds that issuance of national identity card to citizens, as an obligation of the state to its citizenry, must remain free as established by the PDP. The N5000 levy must be immediately rescinded before it triggers restiveness in the nation.

ALSO READ: Economic transformation: We’ll take hard decisions in Oyo — Makinde

“Already, the fee is generating tension in the country as Nigerians have continued to register their rejection in the public space.”

The Party while condemning the increasing penchant of the APC administration to impose all sorts of taxes on suffering Nigerians pointed that: “only recently, the Buhari-led APC administration increased the Value Added Tax (VAT) on goods and services from 5 per cent to 7.5 percent.

“This is, in addition, to increase in tariffs for electricity and other services as well as the obnoxious decision to return the tollgates on our major highways.

“Our party cautions that such impositions breed resentment and erode the much-desired patriotism; leading to the escalation of social vices and low commitment to nation-building by citizens,” it stated.

It, therefore, charged President Buhari to direct the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to immediately cancel its decision to levy Nigerians for national identity cards.