Minister of communications and digital economy, Isa Pantami has disclosed that the 14 million internet subscribers that deserted the telcos within one year are mostly criminals.
This was stated on Wednesday by Isa Pantami while addressing journalists at the end of the weekly federal executive council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Recall that the federal government had said that the national identification numbers (NINs) registration would help fight insecurity.
“The NIN will cover one of the weaknesses in our security structure. We will be able to easily identify and know the personality of Nigerians,” Buhari had said.
“We will identify people easily, including the crooks.”
In April, the government mandated the use of NIN for the issuance of new SIM cards.
Pantami while speaking on the drop of internet users said it was because of the government’s insistence on NIN for new subscribers.
“The over 12 million that have dropped are mostly criminals that cannot come out to regularise their numbers,” the minister said.