The federal government has approved the procurement of two sets of telecommunications equipment worth N1.8 billion to be deployed in the detection and blockage of criminal elements using telephones and other communication gadgets to ply a nefarious swindling trade.
Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Pantami, made this known on Wednesday in Abuja while briefing newsmen at the end of the weekly virtual Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting held at the State House.
Pantami also said after the meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari that the approval of the new regulatory system would support the country in addressing the challenge of insecurity. He explained that the deployment of the system would help to monitor, detect and block SIM cards and fight voice traffic termination fraught.
The minister said, “I am here to present two memos approved by the Federal Executive Council. And these two memos are to be implemented by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
The first memo that has been approved by the Federal Executive Council is for the deployment of regulatory systems in the telecommunications industry, which is to be implemented by NCC. These regulatory systems have two components. Component number one is the deployment of a regulatory system to monitor, detect and block SIM box traffic. This is the first one and it is going to be implemented at the cost of N804, 122,897.50 by NCC while the second one is going to be deployed at the price of N1, 049,790,713.58.
This deployment of system to monitor, detect and block SIM is to fight what we call voice traffic termination fraught. What the two systems will do is to support our country in two major ways in addition to many others. It will support the country in addressing challenges of insecurity,” the statement read in part.
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