By Daniel Essiet

The Nigerian Communications Commission has lamented that it lacks the power to deal with criminals who  vandalise telecoms infrastructure across the country.

Its Executive Vice Chairman, Prof Umar Danbatta said the lack of power to prosecute the vandals made it imperative for the Commission to partner the Judiciary.

He added that so far the Judiciary has helped in ensuring that cases involving such criminals are receiving timely attention in various courts.

Danbatta made the remarks when he received a delegation of Kano State Judiciary who visited the Zonal Office of the Commission in Kano.

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According to a statement by the Director of Public Affairs of the NCC, Dr Ikechukwu Adinde, the delegation was led by the Chief Registrar of the State High Court, Alhaji Abdullahi Ado Bayero.

Danbatta said, while the Commission is doing everything within its regulatory mandate to enforce compliance among licensees as well as collaborating with stakeholders to protect telecom infrastructure, some individuals indulge in willful damage of telecom infrastructure, vandalism, telecoms facility theft, and fibre cuts, among other crimes.

He said these criminal acts conspire to degrade the quality of service (QoS) in the country, and since the NCC has no prosecutorial power, the need to strengthen collaboration with the judicial arm of the government at all levels has become expedient.

“NCC does not have prosecutorial power in criminal acts committed by the citizens and licensees which are inimical to the progress of the sector; and we appreciate the ways and manners such criminal cases are being dispensed by the judiciary. This is a testimony to the kind cooperation NCC has been enjoying from the judiciary,” he observed.

Bayero who commended the efforts of Danbatta and NCC in fast-tracking digital transformation of governance and other sectors, added that Judiciary, as a whole, has recognised the necessity and inevitability of digital justice system as well as full integration of ICT-based court system in the administration of justice.

He said this position is well-entrenched in the National Judiciary Information Technology Policy (NJITP), 2021 and is consistent with the NCC’s objective and strategic intervention to advance ICT knowledge and training for various public institutions in Nigeria.