Reps Charges Committee On SIM Card Registration

The House of Representatives has directed
its Committee on Communications to investigate the SIM Card registration regime
and report back to the House within 30 days.

This resolution was sequel to a motion
moved by Rep. Albert Sam- Tsokwa (PDP – Taraba ) and 22 others in Abuja on
Tuesday.

Tsokwa, who is the Chairman House Committee
on Rules and Business, said that on April 26, the House had resolved to set up
an ad – hoc committee to investigate the SIM Card regime in the country.

He explained that the jurisdiction of the
committee on communications as contained in rule 138 of the standing orders of
the House of Representatives was to coordinate and monitor the activities of
telecommunications.

According to him, this includes the Global
Systems for Mobile Communications ( GSM ) and other communications matters.

Tsokwa urged the House to allow the
communication committee that had already begun work on the SIM card regime to
go ahead and report its finding to the House.

Rep. Oyetunde Ojo ( ACN – Ekiti ) Chairman
Committee on Communications, said that his committee had begun work on the
alleged sale of pre-registered SIM Cards.

He urged the House to give the committee
enough time to complete its investigations on the issue.

According to Ojo, some persons have been
arrested in respect of the sale of pre-registered SIM Cards.

He assured the House that ‘’in due course
we will submit the report of our findings’’.

Reps. Abike Dabiri – Erewa ( ACN – Lagos )
, Emmanuel Jime ( PDP – Benue ) Hussain Namadi ( PDP – Jigawa ) in their
various contributions supported the motion and urged that the communications
committee be given a time frame to conclude their investigations.

The motion was unanimously adopted by the
members.