Telecommunications services across Kogi State have reportedly collapsed following a tax dispute between the state government and MTN Nigeria, leading to a mass migration of subscribers to other networks and a strain on infrastructure.

The shutdown began after the Kogi State Utility Infrastructure Management and Compliance Agency (KUIMCA), with backing from a court order, formally sealed MTN’s facilities in Lokoja due to the company’s alleged failure to comply with state regulations and remit necessary levies. As a result, MTN’s network went offline across the state.

The Guardian reports that since the agency announced the sealing of the MTN office, its subscribers have been rushing to Glo Telecom and Celltel Telecom.

However, both networks have struggled to handle the sudden surge in demand due to limited infrastructure capacity to accommodate the massive subscribers who are in a desperate search for an alternative to MTN.

One of the MTN subscribers, Abdulkadir Sani, said all three telecom service providers in Kogi state cannot give subscribers the service required of them.

He told The Guardian that he first registered for Celltel network and wasn’t satisfied with the service, forcing him to become a Glo subscriber.

“I later went for the Glo network, which was good initially, but later, their network began to slow down. I kept asking other subscribers if their own is better than my own,” said Sani.

“We all discovered that the other networks do not have the infrastructure to accommodate the influx of new subscribers. That was when I realiSed we are in deep mess in Kogi state.”

Invariably, the collapse of the MTN telecom network services has rendered Glo and Celltel incapacitated due to their inability to accommodate the influx.

Many are asking how long it will take MTN and the government to resolve their disputes and retain their position as the largest service provider in the state.

They are also questioning how long it will take Glo and Celltel to upgrade their network capacities enough to serve their new customers across the state.

Amidst this dilemma, the Chairman of Kogi Elders Forum, Julius Elukpo, has threatened to sue MTN if the telecommunications giant fails to restore the network within 24 hours.

The chairman gave the warning on Saturday while speaking with our reporter in Lokoja.

“The Director General of KUIMCA, Alhaji Taofeeq Isah, had attributed the shut down to the failure of the Telecom company to comply fully with rules of operation as stipulated in the official gazette guiding their operation in the state and I ability to make the necessary payments,” said Elukpo.

“I will sue the Telecommunication company for damages and call on affected customers to take the same legal action against MTN.”

He said the lack of a network has caused him a lot of damage, warning that if the network provider fails to do what is needed, legal action will be taken against them.

“As a matter of fact, they have to settle with Government so that network service will be restored by paying their revenue promptly,” he added.

Meanwhile, KUIMCA and the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service (KGIRS) have vowed not to unseal the MTN network until it complies with its rules and regulations.

The Director-General of KUIMCA, Taufiq Isa, and the Executive Chairman of KGIRS, Salihu Enehe, in a joint press conference in Lokoja, attributed the shutdown to the failure of the telecom company to fully comply with the rules stipulated in the official gazette guiding its operations in the state.

“Upon my assumption of office last August, I reviewed their files and discovered they had not fully complied with the rules guiding their operations in the state. I called them for a discussion, during which they complained of being overbilled regarding the area of the state covered by their optic fibre,” said Isa.

“I accompanied them on a verification exercise to assess their claim, which took about four days, and we found that they were covering even more areas than they had claimed. We asked them to make the necessary payments, but MTN refused. That is why we sealed off their facilities after obtaining a court order to do so,” Isa said.

He urged residents of the state to be patient with the government, assuring them that their interests are being protected.

Isa noted that since MTN is not the only mobile telecom network operating in the state, residents and security agencies should consider switching to other networks, given their importance in securing the lives and property of citizens, which should not be compromised under any circumstances.

Also speaking, the Executive Chairman of KGIRS, Salihu Enehe, stated that MTN had been refusing to respond to numerous messages requesting compliance with various terms of operation in the state.

The chairman, who was represented by a director in the agency, Hassana Salawu, noted that MTN had violated various rules, including the optic fibre right of way across the state.

“MTN claimed to have 48 optic fibres, whereas an audit revealed they have 199 fibres laid underground in the state. We have called for reconciliation meetings several times, but they have claimed not to be ready up until now,” he said.