Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has given President Muhammadu Buhari a 48-hour ultimatum to reverse the decision to block the mobile lines of 72 million Nigerians.
Just last week, the Federal Government directed telecommunication companies in the country to bar all outgoing calls on unlinked lines from Monday, April 4, 2022.
Unlinked lines are Subscriber Identity Modules (SIMS) not yet registered and linked with the National Identification Number (NIN) by users.
While reacting to the ban via a statement issued on Sunday, SERAP asked President Muhammadu Buhari to “direct the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to immediately reverse the apparently unlawful decision to block over 72 million active telecommunication subscribers from making calls on their SIMs.”
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“Blocking people from making calls undermines their ability to communicate freely and associate with others. It infringes on their rights to freedom of expression and family life, as well as socio-economic rights,” SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare said.