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Why NCC ordered Immediate Reactivation of Lines Affected by NIN-SIM Verification Issues

By Stanley Iwuoha

The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC has ordered immediate reactivation of all blocked lines.
The directive was given in a statement signed by the Director Public Affairs, Dr. Reuben Muoka on Monday. Recall that the telecom operators last weekend blocked some mobile lines over non compliance to the NIN/SIM linkage directive, which attracted large crowd and protest at various service centers of the operators. The statement reads in part: “Over the weekend many telecom subscribers/consumers were unable to access their phone lines because of the inability of many telecom consumers to verify their National Identification Numbers (NINs) with their Subscriber Identification Modules (SIMs). “This meant that their numbers were blocked by their telecom service providers in keeping with laws and policies of the NIN-SIM linkage.

“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.

“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 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.”
Meanwhile, when we visited MTN office in Garki 2, Abuja, a marmot of subscribers (crowd) was seen besieged the office demanding for deactivation of their lines. Some of them who spoke to our reporter said their lines were blocked to counter the planned nationwide protest. It took the presence of policemen deployed to the area to calm their frayed nalves.

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