SIM Re-registration: NCA sued for implementing punitive actions on unregistered SIM users
A group, identified as The People’s Project (TPP), have filed a lawsuit against the National Communications Authority (NCA) and the Attorney-General (AG) at the Supreme Court over the ongoing SIM card re-registration exercise.
The group, per the suit, is seeking that the deadline for the SIM re-registration exercise and the associated punitive measures be declared null and void by the Supreme Court.
“A declaration that on a true and proper interpretation of Articles 2, 23, and 296 of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, the directive by the Minister for Communication, Mrs. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful on Sunday, July 31, 2022, that the 1st Defendant will ensure that all SIM cards that are not re-registered by 30th September 2022 will be blocked while the National Identification Authority has not been able to issue the Ghana card which is the only card to be used for the said re-registration exercise to all Ghanaians is arbitrary, capricious, amounts to an abuse of discretion and same is unconstitutional, null, void and of no legal effect.
“A declaration that on a true and proper interpretation of Articles 2, 23, and 296 of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, the decision of the 1st Defendant to restrict, penalize and prevent unregistered SIMs from undertaking certain activities including making outgoing calls from 5tn September 2022 in a letter dated 4- September 2022 while not all Ghanaians have been issued with the Ghana card for the re-registration exercise is arbitrary, capricious, unconstitutional and of no legal effect,” read parts of the suit.
The National Communication Authority (NCA) on Monday, September 5, 2022, directed telecommunication companies in the country, to begin blocking mobile telephony services to unregistered SIM card users ahead of the September 30 deadline elapses.
According to a statement signed by the Authority’s Director-General, outgoing calls and data services for a sequential batch of numbers will be blocked for 2 days weekly on a rotational basis.
“MNOs [Mobile Network Operators] shall divide the unregistered SIMs into five batches for the purpose of implementing this punitive measure.
“These measures shall exclude blocking of SMS to give defaulting subscribers the opportunity to initiate registration if they so wish.
“Subscribers who fully register their SIM cards within the period they have been blocked will only be unblocked by the MNOs after 48 hours to avoid the MNOs tampering with their systems intermittently,” stated the NCA.
The move by the NCA, has resulted in widespread complaints from affected Ghanaians.
