The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has ordered all telecommunication companies in the country to reactivate all lines they have barred over issues surrounding the linking and verification of National Identification Numbers (NIN) linked with their SIMs.
Pacesetter reports that this was confirmed in a statement made by NCC’s Director of Public Affairs, Reuben Muoka and shared on the X handle of NCC’s Executive Vice Chairman, Dr. Aminu Maida.
The sudden U-turn from the regulator, which had earlier given the telecom operators a July 31 deadline to bar all lines with unverified NINs, may be connected with the planned protest and the claims that the government was trying to frustrate the protest through telecommunications.
Recall that a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, had, Sunday, July 28, 2024, written the NCC, alleging plans by telcos to disrupt access to internet services with the intent to frustrate the planned nationwide protest.
Adegboruwa had, among other things, stated that: “From all indications, it would seem that the underlying target of the telecom companies is to limit the reach of their customers in order to restrict access and thus frustrate the protests.
“The NCC is urged to look into this and come to the rescue of the subscribers.”
Pacesetter cannot independently verify if the directive from NCC was as a result of the petition by the senior lawyer.