The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has restated its commitment to continue to strengthen collaboration with judicial institutions as part of its efforts to further protect telecoms infrastructure in the country.
The Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the Commission, Prof. Umar Danbatta, gave the assurance during a courtesy visit by a high-powered delegation of the Kano State Judiciary to him at the NCC Kano Zonal Office, Kano State, at the weekend.
Addressing members of the delegation, Danbatta explained that while the Commission was 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 the infrastructure, vandalism, telecoms facility theft, and optic fibre cuts, amongst other crimes.
According to the industry regulator, these criminal acts have continued to adversely affect the quality of service being provided by telecoms operators, and since the NCC has no prosecutorial power, the need to strengthen collaboration with the judicial arm of government at all levels has become imperative.
He noted: “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.”
The EVC maintained that the Commission would never fold its arms while unscrupulous citizens continue to cause havoc on telecommunications infrastructure since that affects the quality of service innocent citizens enjoy.
“Therein lies the importance of the judiciary in the work that we have been assigned by the government to do. We very much appreciate this cooperation with the judiciary and we are committed to ensure that the cooperation grows stronger and stronger going forward,” he clarified
Danbatta further explained that the recently-concluded NCC Judges Workshop held in Abuja was a very important initiative of the Commission to continuously collaborate with members of the judicial arm of government through updating them with the trends and regulatory dynamism of the sector with a view to improving their knowledge for effective dispensation of justice.
Earlier in his address, the Chief Registrar of Kano State High Court of Justice, Abdullahi Ado Bayero, who led the delegation, commended the efforts of Prof. Danbatta and NCC in fast-tracking digital transformation of governance and other sectors of the economy, adding that the Judiciary has recognized 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 was 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.
The Chief Registrar said: “It is in line with the above that the Kano State Judiciary is determined to explore all necessary avenues and opportunities to integrate ICT-based court systems as well as digitized justice delivery systems for efficient and effective administration of justice in the state and we request NCC’s intervention in this regard.”
