The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has reiterated its commitment to protecting telecom infrastructure, following President Bola Tinubu’s Executive Order designating telecom facilities as critical national infrastructure. The NCC has launched a public awareness campaign to educate the public on the importance of safeguarding these facilities, which include fibre cables and other components.

Mrs. Nnenna Ukoha, Head of Public Affairs at the NCC, expressed deep concern over the destruction of telecom assets, citing frequent attacks resulting in cutting of cables, stolen generators and fuel, and removal of critical components. “The NCC has gone ahead with plans to operationalize President Tinubu’s Executive Order, which criminalises the damage or tampering of critical national infrastructure, including telecom facilities,” she said.

The NCC has identified three major challenges affecting telecom operations: vandalism and theft, site access denial, and road construction-related damages. Ukoha advised users to monitor data usage, disable background updates, understand their data plans, change hotspot passwords regularly, and avoid high-resolution downloads and auto-play settings to prevent data depletion.

The NCC is collaborating with stakeholders to reduce accidental damage to telecom infrastructure during construction and working with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) to educate the public on the importance of protecting telecom facilities. “We need better coordination as nationwide construction activities increase,” Ukoha emphasized.

NUJ FCT Chairman Comrade Grace Ike commended the NCC’s leadership and expressed the Union’s desire to build a strategic partnership with the NCC on training, public awareness, affordable internet access for journalists, and promoting transparency. The partnership aims to support the NCC’s efforts in protecting critical national assets and ensuring uninterrupted service delivery nationwide.