The Federal Government has mandated the Nigeria Communication Commission to direct telecommunication operators to block about 9.2 million sim cards without proper registration.
The order followed a report of short-term performance submitted by the NCC as directed by the Minister of Communications Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami.
Recently, Pantami had directed all Agencies and Parastatals under his purview to submit their baseline short-term performance targets report. Based on the directive, the NCC submitted its report in which it stated the figures of improperly registered SIM cards in use around the country.
NCC in its report had revealed that about an estimated nine million two hundred thousand (9.2M) SIM cards did not comply with the proper procedures of SIM registration.
Sequel to the disclosure, Dr. Pantami directed NCC to ensure all mobile network operators block all SIM cards that do not meet proper registration standards until users comply with proper re-registration procedures.
The security implication of this irregularity is too grave to ignore and the Federal Ministry of Communications will not tolerate any actions or inaction that will compromise the nation’s security.
