FG Inaugurates Committees Against Fake Phones

• FG Inaugurates Committees Against Fake Phones

The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) has described the influx of fake and substandard mobile devices in the country as a bad omen that requires urgent attention to reverse the trend.

In order to ensure an urgent attention to this, two joint committees formed from the Office of the National Security Adviser, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the Federal Ministry of Communications, the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission were created to address security concerns and cybercrime arising from the proliferation of fake and substandard phones in the country.

The joint committees; a Project Steering Committee and a Project Delivery Team which were formed at an inaugural meeting in Abuja on Wednesday, were set to combat fraudsters deploying their trade using substandard mobile devices.

As contained in a statement by the NCC, the committees were given the mandate to ensure the implementation of mobile Devices Management Systems (DMS), a public-private partnership project, aimed at combating the proliferation of fake, counterfeit, cloned and substandard mobile communications devices in the telecoms industry.

The Executive Vice Chairman NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, while inaugurating the committees, said the move to ensure that all mobile devices are in line with agreed standards and specifications and the approval of all mobile devices used in the telecommunications of the nation, was in line with the mandate of the NCC as enshrined in the Nigerian Communications Act 2003.

He further said that the heightened cybercrime, tax evasion, terrorism, health and safety concerns enhanced by the use of fake, counterfeit and substandard phones in Nigeria was a responsibility which the NCC took seriously.

Adding that, the principal objective of the proposed DMS was to “establish a secure and comprehensive single-window solution that will enable the commission to implement a proven solution in the Nigerian environment that is sustainable and demonstrate value for money; in addition, helping to address the various concerns that have been raised with the NCC from the ONSA in our regular interactions on security matters as it concerns the telecommunications industry.”

Representing the Minister of Communications, Mr Adebayo Shittu at the inauguration, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Communications, Mrs Nkechi Ejele, commended the NCC for the initiative, noting that she was impressed with the comprehensive and clear terms of job descriptions given to the committees.