Banditry: No plan to shutdown telecoms in Kaduna – Govt

The Kaduna State Government has said that it has no plans to shutdown telecommunication services in the state, passing it off as fake news.

This comes as a result of the numerous attacks by bandits in the northern parts of the country.

In a statement by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Communications, Muyiwa Adekeye, says that the government “has not made such a decision, neither has it announced any such plans.

“The Kaduna State Government did not reach out to any federal agency to request a telecoms shutdown, and it has not in any way ordered or effected a communications shutdown”.

Mr. Adekeye asked residents of the state to ignore the rumours.

He said, “It is fake news which some people are trying to pass off as genuine by placing the KDSG logo on their false statements. It is simply not true.

“Citizens should ignore the fake news. There is no shutdown of telecoms services in Kaduna State”.

He added that the state government is transparent about security matters.

“Where a telecoms shutdown deemed to be necessary, that decision would have been formally announced in a properly signed statement posted on official information handles”, Mr. Adekeye added.

Recently, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) directed telecommunications providers to shut down services in Zamfara State.

The shutdown is to last for two weeks.

This was disclosed in a memo signed on Friday by the vice-chairman of the NCC, Professor Umar Danbatta, and addressed to one of the telecoms providers.

According to the memo, the shutdown of the telecoms sites had become necessary due to the lingering insecurity in the state.

“The pervading security situation in Zamfara has necessitated an immediate shutdown of all telecommunications services in the state from today, September 3, 2021.

“This is to enable relevant security agencies to carry out the required activities towards addressing the security challenge in the state”.