Nigerian farmers to protest against MTN over SIM cards they say Boko Haram is using
Kano — Farmers in northern Nigeria have called on cellphone operators including MTN to block SIM cards that have not been formally registered by their users, saying they enable the operations of militant Islamist group Boko Haram. "We will stage a protest against MTN and take necessary legal action if it fails to comply with this directive within 48 hours," Mohammed Sani, the head of the region’s association of smallholder farmers, said in an e-mailed statement on Monday. MTN was fined $1bn by the Nigerian government last year for missing a deadline to disconnect about 5-million subscribers in a security crackdown. The farmers believe that unregistered SIMs make it easier for Boko Haram to communicate, co-ordinate attacks and recruit youths without being detected by authorities.
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