Possible Reasons Why NCC Resumed Registration of SIM and SIM Sales Before Concluding its Audit
Why NCC Resumed Registration of SIM
After suspending SIM sales and registration for four months, the Federal Government declared yesterday that the exercise would resume April 19, 2021. The ban was lifted following the final approval of the Revised National Digital Identity Policy for SIM Card Registration, according to a statement from the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy.
According to the new regulation, all SIM registrations must now include the National Identity Number (NIN). While implementing this new SIM registration policy may have been the government's intention all along, the change's timing begs the question, why now?
What About The Telco Audit Exercise?
When the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) implemented SIM sales/registration suspension in December 2020, it reported that it was done to "allow for an audit of operators' subscriber registration databases."
The commission asserted that the prohibition would remain in effect until the audit was concluded. The NCC stated that the exercise's objective was to crack down on multiple SIM registrations and fraudulent sales.
However, there is no evidence that the audit exercise has been completed based on publicly accessible information. Thus, one can reasonably inquire why, despite this, the government has reopened SIM registrations.
Recall that in 2015, the NCC fined MTN N1.04 trillion for failing to deactivate 5.1 million inappropriately registered SIMs. In 2018, the fine was reduced to N330 billion.
Maybe there will be no defaulters this time around. However, the issue remains as to what the result of that audit was. And why has the government agreed to lift the prohibition on SIM registration because it has yet to make the audit public's results or even confirm whether the audit was completed?
Pressure From Frustrated Nigerians
A probable reason the government ordered the resumption of SIM registration is in response to Nigerians' cross-section about the temporary ban. Individuals and companies alike had expressed their dissatisfactions during the suspension's length.
It includes instances where subscribers could not reclaim their lines. Students could not purchase SIM cards for UTME registration, and business owners were unable to acquire new SIM cards for customer service agents and expatriates.
Although it appeared as though the government was set on lifting the ban only after the NIN-SIM linking exercise allowed existing SIM holders to connect their NINs, the government's latest decision may have been affected by continued complaints from Nigerians.
Telcos Lose Billions and The Pantami Controversy
Following the SIM registration ban, mobile network operators such as MTN and Airtel lost over 8.4 million subscribers and an estimated N12 billion. Mobile subscriptions dropped by over 4 million per month between December and January and January to February due to the suspension.
Telcos were incurring losses with each passing day of the order due to a declining customer base. Resuming SIM registration was critical to recouping these losses.
Additionally, Minister of Communications and Digital Economic Dr. Isa Ali Pantami, whose ministry the NCC reports to, is currently embroiled in a media dispute over alleged remarks he made about Taliban/Al-Qaeda activities. A video expressed his opposition to political appointments.
Although Pantami recently refuted similar claims, some believe the Minister lifted the SIM registration ban at this time to avoid negative publicity.
It is vital to emphasize that, while these factors may have "compelled" authorities to resume SIM registration, the final ratification of the NIN as a mandatory condition for SIM card registration under the Revised National Digital Identity Policy appears to be the primary reason.
