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.
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 not be unconnected with the planned protest and the claims that the government was trying to frustrate the protest through telecommunications.
According to a statement issued on Monday afternoon by the NCC’s Director of Public Affairs, Reuben Muoka, the lines were blocked by the telecom service providers in keeping with the laws and policies of the NIN-SIM linkage.
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The telecom regulator, however, said it was aware of the challenges caused by the weekend blockages and ordered the telecom operators to unbar all the lines.
