Telecom
Barred Phone Lines: Lagos Lawyer Demands N10Bn Damages from Telcos, NCC
Mr. Olukoya Ogungbeje, Lagos-based activist and lawyer, has dragged telecommunication companies operating in Nigeria as well as the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to a Lagos Federal High Court, challenging the recent barring of phone lines of citizens.
Ogungbeje joined Dr. Aminu Maida, chief executive officer of NCC, and MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, Airtel Networks Nigeria Ltd. and Emerging Markets Telecommunication Services Ltd. (EMTS 9 Mobile).
The lawyer, aside from seeking the order for award of N10 billion as general damages is also seeking the following reliefs: “A declaration that the act and action of further barring, restricting and deactivating of the applicant’s phone lines/SIM cards and the phone lines/SIM cards of Nigerian citizens by the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th respondents, upon the directive of the 1st and 2nd respondents from 28th of February 2024 till date, despite a valid and subsisting order of court granted against the respondents is wrongful, illegal, unlawful, undemocratic, unconstitutional and thus prejudicial against applicant’s and other affected Nigerian citizens fundamental rights to fair hearing as enshrined under Section 36 of the 1399 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“A declaration that the respondents being creations and creatures of law are subject to the court of law and the judicial powers of the courts of law and under a legal duty and constitutional obligation to obey valid and subsisting order of court as enshrined under Section 6 (6) (b) of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
“An order setting aside the entire directive and all its consequential effects in connection with the subject matter of this suit issued by the 1st and 2nd respondents to the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th respondents having been made in gross violation of a valid and subsisting order of court.
“An order compelling the respondents to jointly and severally to immediately activate, debar, unlock, unblock and unrestrict the applicant’s phone lines/SIM cards and the phone lines/SIM cards of the affected Nigerian citizens forthwith.
“An order compelling the respondents to jointly and severally tender a public apology to the applicant and other affected Nigerian citizens and to pay the sum of N10 billion only as general and exemplary damages for the prejudicial, wrongful and unconstitutional action of the respondents and the inconvenience, damages and injury caused the applicant and other affected Nigerian citizens in flagrant violation of a valid and subsisting order of court.
“An order of perpetual injunction restraining the respondents jointly and severally, whether by themselves, their agents, officers, officials, members, servants, ministries, organs, agencies or privies or anybody deriving authority from them by whatever name called from barring, restricting and of deactivating the applicant’s and other affected Nigerian citizens, phones lines/ SIM cards or taking any step, action, further step or action or untoward action or proceedings against the applicant and other affected Nigerian citizens on any fact connected with or related to the facts of this case.”
The motion which is supported with 33 paragraphs affidavit, according to the lawyer, is pursuant to Sections 36 and 46 of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic Of Nigeria; Order II Rule 1 of the Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure Rules 2009 and under the court’s inherent jurisdiction imbued by Section 6 (6)(B) of constitution of the Federal Republic Of Nigeria, 1999 as amended.
He also listed the following grounds upon which the reliefs were sought: “That there has been grave constitutional infraction perpetrated by the respondents against the applicant and other law abiding Nigerian citizens.
“That on the 22nd of February 2024, the court of law granted an order restraining the respondents from barring, deactivating and or restricting any phone lines/SIM cards of the applicant and Nigerian citizens.
“That the respondents have took the law into their hands by barring, deactivating and restricting the phone lines/SIM cards property of the applicant and other Nigerian citizens upon directive by the 1st and 2nd respondents despite a valid and subsisting order of court granted against the respondents on the 28th of February 2024.
“That the applicant has a constitutional right to fair nearing and right to own property guaranteed by the constitution.
“That the actions of the respondents have overreached the order of court and thus prejudicial against the applicant’s right to fair hearing.
Hence, it is not in accordance with due process of law. “That the act and action of the respondents is clearly wrongful, illegal, unconstitutional and prejudicial against the applicant’s right to fair hearing.
“That the respondents are creations and creatures of law and thus must act within the limit of the law.
“The respondents have no right to take the law into their own hands and that the constitutional safeguards to persons alleged to have committed any offence are sacrosanct and must be jealously guarded by the court.
“That the applicant has his fundamental rights protected and guaranteed under the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
“That the applicant has the right under Section 46 of the 1999 constitution to approach the court for redress for the breach of his rights. And that the applicant is entitled to the reliefs sought in this case.”
The lawyer in his affidavit stated that his fundamental right to fair hearing and the rights of millions of Nigerian citizens guaranteed under Sections 36 of the constitution have been and is being violated by the respondents.
“That based on the above, he has filed this suit for himself and in public interest pursuant to the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement procedure) Rules 2009.
“That he is the telephone subscriber of the respondents with phone numbers/lines (09139128873) and (08027208563), 08055382155, 08090220200, respectively. And that sometimes in January 2024, the respondents threatened in barring, deactivating and restricting the phone lines of Nigerian citizens whose phones lines are not linked with the National Identity Number (NIN).
“That he immediately challenged the action of the respondents culminating to the valid and subsisting court order granted on the 22nd of February 2024, restraining the respondents from barring, deactivating and restricting my phone lines and the phone lines of Nigerian citizens.
“That surprisingly, while daring the court, the first and second respondents threatened to go ahead with the act and action of barring, deactivating and restricting of phones despite a valid and subsisting court order restraining the respondents.
And that to his utmost shock, on the 28th of February 2024, he woke up only to discover that his phone lines have been barred, deactivated and restricted by the second to sixth respondents, based on the mere directive of the first and second respondents despite a subsisting order of court.
“That act and action of the second to sixth respondents in barring, deactivating and restricting his phone lines and that of Nigerian citizens upon a mere directive by the first respondent without any order of court and despite a valid and subsisting court order have caused me great loss of business opportunities, embarrassment, untold hardship, discomfort and inconvenience and hampered my business as a legal practitioner and businessman.
“That he immediately contacted his solicitors, who wrote letters to the respondents demanding a prompt reversal of their illegal act and action having been carried out without recourse to due process of law.
But the respondents have failed and refused to reply or respond to his solicitors letters till date.
“That the act and action of the respondents of restricting, barring, deactivating the phone lines of millions of Nigerian citizens is a clear brazen act of undermining the court of law and its judicial powers and thus prejudicial against their rights to fair hearing.
And that the act and action of barring, blocking deactivating and restricting my phone lines by the respondents despite a valid and subsisting court order is clearly wrongful and prejudicial against my rights and the rights of Nigerian citizens to fair hearing and right to own property.” However, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has charged the over 174 million telecoms subscribers in the country to constantly monitor their data usage to authenticate their consumption level.
This follows concerns being raised by telecoms consumers about the rapidity of data depletion on their devices.
The Commission particularly enjoined the consumers to always contact their service providers to make requests for cases of discrepancies noted in their data usage.
While the consumers are expected to contact their service providers to request for their usage history/statement where inconsistency exists in their data usage as first step, the Commission said they may also escalate such issues to the Commission through its toll-free Number 622 and social media platforms, especially if their requests are not satisfactorily handled.
The Commission, which also made some clarifications regarding the concerns being raised by the consumers around data usage, said the need to inform the consumers on their concerns is part of its commitment to protect and appropriately inform and educate the telecom consumer on industry issues.
Making further clarifications around data speed and usage, the Commission said data speed is the speed at which data is transferred between two devices, measured in megabits per second (Mbps or mbps), stressing that given the spread of Internet services and the immense investment in the sector, data rates have continued to increase and users may be unaware of how to measure data speed.
The telecoms regulator explained further that websites such as www.fast.com also provide an easy way for consumers to measure Internet speed on any device at any location.
“The higher the data speed, the quicker pages load-downloads and uploads-occur and expectedly, the quicker data bundles are exhausted. So, as telecom consumers are able to do more on devices in less time, some consumers’ devices & network service providers make it possible to limit data speed to help users manage data usage better.
“In any case, most devices now include functions to measure data used by devices and it is imperative that users monitor same to authenticate data usage, such as applications left running on devices. Therefore, where discrepancies occur users may contact their service provider to request for their usage history/statement. If request is not dealt with satisfactorily then, users can contact NCC by calling 622 or engage the Commission via its social media platforms”.
It added that the data usage experience is a function of location, network equipment and users connected in a particular location.
Association of Mobile Communication Device Technicians of Nigeria (AMCODET), has called on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to make it mandatory for mobile phones to be registered at the point of purchase.
According to Kehinde Apara, president of AMCODET, implementing this registration process would significantly help in combating phone theft and assist in locating stolen devices.
Apara, made this appeal in an interview in Lagos on Monday.
He stated, “Registration of mobile phones will reduce theft to the barest minimum, as it will be difficult for thieves to sell registered stolen phones.”
Apara explained that the registration of new phones would also help to reduce the harassment faced by technicians by security agencies.
“So many of our members have been labelled accomplices in theft cases, because customers bring stolen phones to them to repair. We believe this is unfair to such innocent people,” he said.
He went on to highlight that the NIN-SIM linkage, which was originally an idea brought forward by AMCODET, was created to curb insecurity and theft.
However, Apara pointed out that “It is not enough.”
He stressed the need for further measures to ensure the proper registration of mobile phones, emphasising that such a step would make it easier for technicians to identify stolen devices brought in for repair or flashing.
“AMCODET has been at the forefront of organising seminars on the security of mobile phones and has also been sensitising the public and authorities on the challenges faced by the association due to phone theft. There is no way our members can identify if a phone is stolen when brought to them for repairs or flashing, but if the phone is registered, the technician can more easily identify it,” he explained.
Apara also expressed a desire for closer collaboration with security agencies, saying, “We want to work with security agencies to ensure that phones are properly registered, theft is prevented, and thieves are brought to book.”
In additin to the call for phone registration, Apara appealed to individuals and the private sector to support efforts to develop the mobile phone industry in Nigeria.
He remarked, “We need individuals’ support to develop our industry, rather than relying on government for everything.”
He emphasised that Nigeria has the capacity to develop its own technology and reduce reliance on imported devices, “With the support of individuals and the private sector, Nigerians can begin to develop its own technology, rather than relying on imported technology.”
Apara expressed optimism for the future of the mobile phone industry in Nigeria, believing that with the right support, the country could build its own technological solutions and move towards greater self-reliance.
“We can develop our own technology.”
“But we need the support of individuals and organisations to make it happen,” he said.
Credit: NAN
French antitrust regulators have fined Apple 150 million euros ($162 million) over its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature, which is facing scrutiny in multiple European countries.
The French Competition Authority ruled that Apple’s implementation of ATT was “neither necessary nor proportionate to the company’s stated goal to protect user data” and unfairly penalized third-party publishers.
Alongside the financial penalty, Apple has been ordered to publish the decision on its website for seven days. The ruling comes amid ongoing investigations in Germany, Italy, Romania, and Poland into ATT, which Apple introduced in 2021 as a privacy safeguard.
ATT requires apps to obtain explicit user consent via a pop-up before tracking activity across other apps and websites. If users decline, the app loses access to their advertising identifier, limiting targeted advertising. Critics argue that the system disproportionately benefits Apple by restricting competitors while promoting its own advertising services.
The French watchdog found that ATT forces users to navigate excessive consent windows for third-party apps on iPhones and iPads, making the process unnecessarily complicated.
Additionally, Apple’s system requires users to opt out of ad tracking twice rather than once, which the authority said undermines the feature’s neutrality and causes economic harm to app publishers and ad service providers.
The ruling emphasized that smaller publishers, which rely heavily on third-party data collection for revenue, are particularly affected.
The French regulator initially declined to impose emergency measures in 2021 after complaints from the advertising industry, but continued its investigation, ultimately leading to Monday’s decision.
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