The Nigerian Communications
Commission (NCC) has sanctioned all the four mobile network operators to the
tune of N131,200,000.00 million for contravening the provisions on pre-registration
of SIM Cards in Nigeria.
Verifying this to DigitalSENSE Business News, Head,
Media & Public Relations at NCC, Mr. Reuben Muoka, the commission’s action
was in line with the provisions of the Telephone Subscribers Registration Regulations
of 2011.
He also said that the fines imposed were
based on the number of fully activated new SIM Cards that were either reported
to the Commission or purchased in compliance monitoring and enforcement
exercises conducted by the Commission, and validated by the offending networks.
According to him, each of such
pre-registered SIMs found attracted a penalty of N200,000 (Two Hundred Thousand
Naira only).
He said the notice of sanction to the
service providers were signed by the Director, Legal and Regulatory Services,
Ms. Josephine Amuwa and Director, Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement, Engr.
Ubale Maska.
Equally, he revealed that among the
sanctioned operators, Airtel Nigeria Networks Ltd was liable to payment of a
fine in the sum of N8,600,000 for the availability of 43 pre-registered SIM
Card during the exercise.
Muoka said the Emerging Markets
Telecommunications Service Ltd (EMTS) trading as Etisalat, was liable to pay a
fine in the sum N5,000,000 for contravening on 25 pre-registered SIM Cards,
while Globacom Ltd was fined N11,000,000 on 55 pre-registered SIM Cards. Even as MTN
Nigeria Communications Ltd is to pay the sum of N29,200,000 for contravention
on 146 pre-registered SIM Cards.
The service providers were given up
to seven days within which to pay the fine, failure of which attracts N500,000 for
any additional day that the contravention persists.
He pointed out that the fine is in exercise
of its discretionary powers following prior warnings in April 2012 that network
service providers would be liable for breaches by their Registration Centres
carrying out pre-registration of the New SIM Cards for sales, since it is the providers
that activate these new SIM Cards.
Part of the sanction letter read: “Based
on the report of enforcement exercises against hawkers, agents and backend
suppliers of fully activated pre-registered New SIM Cards in the year 2012, and
first quarter of 2013, it has been established that there is an urgent need to
sanction all Network operators who have not complied with the Direction.”
The Commission, Muoka further said,
reminded the service providers that it had at the commencement of the SIM
Registration exercise project instructed that all New SIM Cards going into the
distribution and sales channels must only be activated as “receive only” with a
proviso that all such cards can only call emergency numbers and operators’ call
centres for a period of 30 days, failure to register such SIM Cards thereafter
will render such SIM Cards inactive.
NCC, therefore, insisted that it is illegal to sell or purchase pre-registered SIM Cards, and that anyone buying or selling pre-registered SIM cards shall be prosecuted and such person or person(s) shall be liable to any crimes committed with the use of such lines.
Remmy Nweke
... Making SENSE of digital revolution!
No comments:
Post a Comment