Lagos: Subscribers tear down MTN office’s iron fence over blocked SIM cards

Angry subscribers besieged the MTN office in FESTAC, Lagos, on Monday, tearing down the iron fence to gain entrance into the telecommunication company’s premises.
A viral video of angry subscribers tearing down the MTN office’s iron fence surfaced amid subscribers’ revolt on Monday.
The angry subscribers reportedly besieged the MTN office in protest over their SIM card blockage over the weekend.
Reacting to the video, the Lagos police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, condemned the attack and said normalcy had been restored.
“Meanwhile, the DPO Festac and his men responded immediately they got this report. They succeeded in restoring normalcy and are still on ground to maintain peace,” Mr Hundeyin tweeted on Monday.
Telcos had come under public criticism for deactivating subscribers’ SIM cards over the weekend, a development that came as Nigerians prepare for nationwide protests over economic hardship.
Earlier Monday, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) ordered all telecommunications service providers to restore all lines deactivated for not linking their National Identity Number (NIN) to their SIM cards.
“The commission has directed all operators to reactivate all lines that were disconnected over the weekend in view of the short time available for consumers to undertake the verification of their NINs with their SIMs. Reactivated consumers are to note that this is for a limited period to allow them to properly link their NIN to their SIM,” NCC said.
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