A crowd of MTN subscribers besieged the firm’s office at Wethedral road, Owerri, Imo State, on Monday morning, protesting the sudden barring of their telephone lines.
The subscribers lamented bitterly over the unexpected move, with some alleging it was done to frustrate a planned nationwide anti-government protest.
MTN, Nigeria’s largest mobile network, barred the lines of several users on Sunday, reportedly for failing to link their National Identification Numbers (NIN) with their mobile phone numbers.
However, some affected persons claimed the company’s action was politically motivated, aimed at disrupting the planned protest.
As of press time, MTN had yet to issue an official statement on the controversy, leaving subscribers in the dark.
The number of affected mobile phone numbers remains unclear, but the crowd at the MTN office in Owerri was overwhelming.
“The situation is very frustrating. I have been here since 6am and the crowd is overwhelming,” an MTN subscriber whose line was barred told INNONEWS.
The barring of lines has caused significant inconvenience to subscribers, who are demanding answers from MTN.