It was a very chaotic situation yesterday at the MTN office in Maitama, Abuja, as hundreds of subscribers, whose SIM cards were disconnected over the weekend besieged the premises to get their lines reconnected.

While only few were allowed into the compound, hundreds were kept outside, as one of the security men was writing down names and allocating numbers to the crowd, who came to update and reactivate their lines.

However, the situation became highly tense following the snail speed of the entire process, as the angry subscribers started banging on the gate, warning that should MTN fail to attend to them, the planned national protest would start in their premises.

The rowdiness brought to an abrupt end, the activities at the telecommunications firm’s office, with some of the staff panic-stricken.

As the atmosphere became charged, the subscribers began singing and chanting, “All we are saying, unbar our lines,” and in less than 20 minutes, more policemen were drafted to the scene followed by trucks of armed military personnel.

The subscribers defied the heavy security presence and insisted that they would not vacate the building until they have their lines unblocked.

In Ibadan, Oyo State and some parts of Ogun State, several frustrated subscribers gathered at various telecommunications firms’ offices to register blockade of their lines without due notifications.

While some claimed that the development might be connected with part of measures to weaken the upcoming hunger protest, others dismissed it, noting that the SIMs of most of the organisers, who have come to the open, were not blocked.

Some of the subscribers converged on the Idi-Ape office of a communications outfit, demanding answers and resolution to their problems.