By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has debunked media reports that it plans to citizens and residents of the country to submit the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) of their phones from July 2021.
The agency, in a statement issued on Friday by its Director of Public Affairs, Mr Ikechukwu Adinde, stated that at no time did it announce such plans.
There had been reports in the media that the federal government was planning to mandate Nigerians to register their IMEI as part of efforts to track their activities.
In December 2020, the federal government through the NCC directed GSM network providers to disconnect any subscriber that fails to link his/her National Identity Number (NIN) with his/her SIM.
The linkage is still ongoing as the government has extended the deadline for the process till June 30, 2021, after several calls for the extension due to the number of subscribers yet to obtain their NINs.
A few days ago, reports went viral that the government was planning to force subscribers to link their phone IMEI to their SIM registration and this has caused an outrage, especially because of the recent controversies involving the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Mr Isa Pantami.
Reacting to the reports, the NCC said “at no time did the commission issue a statement regarding the registration of IMEI by subscribers and it has no plans to do so.”
The agency explained that, “The reports in question have emanated from a section of the Revised National Identity Policy for SIM Card Registration recently launched by President Muhammadu Buhari and which has been uploaded on the commission’s website.”
“It is pertinent to state that the commission is in the process of deploying a Device Management System (DMS). The DMS will essentially protect subscribers against phone theft and will identify and enable the elimination of fake devices from the networks,” the statement stressed.
“The system will capture IMEI automatically without any requirement for subscribers to submit same.
“The general public is advised to disregard the said publications, which have created the erroneous impression that telephone subscribers will be required to register their IMEI with their networks,” the agency concluded.
