EDITORIAL

NCC, Extend Subscriber Registration Deadline

*Dr. Eugene Juwah, NCC Boss

The period provided by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) for the registration of all existing SIM cards in the country, would have elapsed since September 28, 2011 all things being equal. SIM card registration commenced in Nigeria in March 2011, and was billed to end on September 28, 2011. The exercise came after several years of agitation by some Nigerians that there was need for this especially in the face of serious security issues threatening the peace and unity of the country.

Within this period, the NCC and indeed the telecom operators embarked upon a comprehensive collation and collection of data of all telecom subscribers in the country who made themselves available within the six months that the exercise was billed to last. The exercise was also expected to provide useful data relevant for the development of the country’s telecommunications sector.

However, before the expiration of this deadline, there were calls from several quarters that the SIM Card registration exercise is extended to allow for those who could not register within the stipulated time to do so. More so, several issues arose on the course of the registration exercise which includes the inability of subscribers to have their SIM activated on time thus compelling such subscribers to register twice. This was in addition to the glaring non-availability of registration agents in some areas especially the rural areas.

The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) only recently

lent its voice in the calls for the extension of the registration deadline. ALTON had stated that only about 50 per cent of the total number of telecom subscribers in the country has so far registered their SIM and contended that it would tantamount to waste of resources should the other 50 per cent be denied the opportunity of having their SIM registered.

ALTON had argued that the general logistics challenges like the inability of SIM registrations agents to access certain parts of the country, especially the hinterland and rural areas, the conduct of 2011 general elections in most parts of the country, the post elections violence, torrential rainfall and resultant devastating flooding in various parts of the country,  the general lull in activities resulting from Christian lent and Muslim Ramadan during which a period of fasting and religious reflection was observed by millions of Nigerians all affected the successful completion of the exercise.

Other challenges that have negatively impacted on the progress of the exercise ALTON pointed out include the heightened threats to security such as the spate of bombings across the country, ongoing violence and threat to lives in certain parts of the country and the general insecurity in many parts. All these the association said have made it impossible to achieve a 100 percent success rate within the period stipulated by the federal government.

It has been argued before now that six months would not be enough to register 90million telecom subscribers in a country as large as Nigeria. For instance, Malaysia with a total population of 27.5 million people took a total of 24 months to conclude her SIM registration exercise; while South Africa, with a population of about 50 million, took 18 months to register all subscribers.

Yet, other countries like Tanzania, Sierra Leone, Algeria and Ghana had their registration exercises extended. It should be noted that most of these countries have significantly lower population sizes and smaller landmasses than Nigeria yet, only six months was used to register 90 million telephone subscribers in the country.

This magazine joins other well meaning Nigerians in urging both the Federal Government and the NCC to as a matter of public safety, national security, societal cohesion and the overall well being of the Nigerian subscribers extend the deadline for the registration of SIM cards in the country. It is obvious that so many Nigerians have yet to register their SIM due to one or two of the reasons listed above.

Both the Federal Government and the NCC cannot say they have succeeded in the exercise when almost half of the total number of subscribers in the country has not been registered. All efforts so far made in the fight against kidnapping, terrorism, cybercrime and other crimes in the country will all collapse to nothingness should this exercise be ended at this point.

It is therefore, the prayer of this magazine that the SIM card registration programme be once more revisited to allow for every Dick and Harry in the country to be captured. This will help the country to find an enduring answer to the lingering absence of a quality National database as well as help in curbing the increasing cases of terrorism and other related security issues in the country.