You will now have to renew IDs after every 10 years as RUTO’s government introduces expiry dates on IDs – Look!

 

Saturday, January 27, 2024 – President William Ruto has come up with sweeping changes that will see Kenyans renew their national IDs every 10 years.

The Kenya Kwanza Government has confirmed the configuration of microchips on Kenyan Identification Cards to comply with the current international standards.

A source at the Ministry of Interior explained that the microchips will operate for a certain duration before expiring. In this case, the IDs will be renewed after every 10 years. 

The source added that the new configuration has nothing to do with Maisha Namba as the government still adheres to the High Court's ruling which halted its rollout. 

The High Court suspended the rollout pending the outcome of a case that questioned the legality of the Maisha Namba process.

"We respect the decision of the court but we had already configured our systems to accommodate the microchip. It has nothing to do with Maisha Namba and collection of money as people speculate online," the source explained.

"A chip operates for a certain duration. For instance, an ATM card has a chip that lasts on average five years. So, in this case, the microchip will last for 10 years. It's the same logic for everything that requires a microchip."

Further, the source revealed that the configuration of the microchip is a global practice that provides an extra layer of security in safeguarding the biometric data.

"It's a global practice that is not just in Kenya," he stated but did not divulge if Kenyans with old IDs will be required to apply for new ones. 

However, Kenyans have accused the government of using the plan as a scheme to increase its income bracket. 

The Kenyan DAILY POST