THE Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on Monday directed telecommunication companies to reactivate all lines blocked because they weren’t linked to the National Identification Numbers (NINs).
A spokesman for the regulatory body Reuben Muoka said the order to reactivate the lines was in view of “the challenges the blockages have caused”.
Millions of phone users had their lines blocked over the weekend with speculations rife that the disconnection of SIM cards was one of measures of the government to stifle a planned #EndBadGovernance protest against hunger and economic hardship widely publicised by displeased youths and scheduled for August.
Human rights lawyer Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa on Sunday said the government tried to frustrate the protest largely planned online using internet restriction. He also asked the regulator to intervene.
In a statement on Monday, the NCC confirmed that indeed lines not linked with NIN were blocked by MTN, Airtel, Globacom and others over the weekend.
“Telecoms consumers and the public will recall the compulsory linkage of NIN with SIM which began in December 2020 when the government directed telecommunication companies to bar unregistered SIM cards and SIMs that were not linked to NIN,” the regulator said.
“Since December 2023, the Commission has since reviewed the deadline a few times; April 15, 2024 was set as the deadline for the full network barring of subscribers with four or fewer SIMs that had unverified NIN details.
“This deadline was then reviewed to July 31, 2024, to give consumers more time to ensure their submitted NIN details are properly verified. Despite these extensions, many phone lines are yet to be linked with verified NINs.
“The objectives of this exercise by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) include enhancing national security and ensuring the national SIM ownership database is accurate.
“The NIN-SIM linkage policy aids in verifying and protecting users’ identities while also providing a critical infrastructure that assures access to the benefits of a robust digital economy for the citizenry.
“The consumer is our priority, therefore, considering the challenges the blockages have caused, the Commission has directed all operators to reactivate all lines that were disconnected over the weekend in view of the short time available for consumers to undertake the verification of their NINs with their SIMs.
“Reactivated consumers are to note that this is for a limited period to allow them to properly link their NIN to their SIM.
“Members of the public who are yet to verify their SIMs are encouraged to do so as soon as possible to maintain access to their lines.”
As of December 2023, Nigeria has over 224 million subscribers, according to official data by the regulator. MTN boasts of over 87 million subscribers, representing 38.79% of the total market share, the highest in the country by any licensed Mobile Network Operator (MNO). Globacom and Airtel have 61 million subscribers each while 9mobile has 13.9 million users.
On the contrary, the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) said over 105 million NIN have been issued to Nigerians in the last four years.