NAIROBI, Kenya Mar 29 – A public interest lawsuit challenging the directive by the Communications Authority to have people registering their SIM cards to submit a photo ID has been set for mention before the High Court on April 6.
Lady Justice Hedwig Ong’udi certified the matter urgent and directed the petitioner Eliud Matindi to serve all respondents including the Kenya National Commission of Human Rights by Thursday.
She directed that any responses must be filed within seven days of service.
“I have perused the pleadings and notice of motion dated March 21 2022 together with Affidavits and annexures. The same is certified urgent. Mention on 6.4.2022 before the duty judge for further directions,” read the Court Document dated March 28.
According to the Communications Authority (CA), mobile phone subscribers who have registered their SIM cards without providing their photo IDs face disconnection by April 15.
“The regulations state that proper SIM card registration includes a photo ID, and since 2017 we have asked mobile service providers to comply, but they have not,” said the regulator.
The directive will also affect individuals who have purchased multiple SIM cards but are yet to register all of them using their photo IDs.
According to the latest Sector Statistics Report, the number of mobile sim subscriptions in the country stood at 65.08million as of December 2021.
