Bashir Ahmad, former media aide to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, has refuted claims that telecommunications companies have blocked user lines in anticipation of the upcoming protests.

On Sunday, social media users reported that their lines from MTN and Airtel had been restricted, leading to speculation that the blocks were related to the planned demonstrations.

Ahmad clarified on social media platform X that, according to a senior government official, the line restrictions were not connected to the protests scheduled for next week.

Instead, the issue was attributed to mismatches between users’ National Identification Numbers (NIN) and the information submitted during SIM registration. These discrepancies typically involve inconsistencies in names or dates of birth.

He explained, “After my earlier tweet complaining about MTN blocking user lines, a senior government official reached out to me and clarified that the issue was not connected to the planned protest. The lines were blocked because the NIN details did not match the information submitted during SIM registration.”

Both MTN and Airtel have informed affected customers via SMS, advising them to visit their offices or use the self-service portal to update their NIN details. Ahmad urged users to share this information widely to ensure those affected can resolve the issue.