A rising number of 9mobile subscribers have been unable to switch to other networks in the past month, with industry insiders alleging that the telecom operator is deliberately blocking porting requests at the backend.
The issue has sparked concerns among industry stakeholders, with the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers calling on the Nigerian Communications Commission to investigate the matter.
This development comes as the operator’s subscriber base has remained stagnant at 3.2 million for three consecutive months—a sharp decline from 23.4 million in 2015 when it held a 15.7 per cent market share.
A visit by our correspondent on Monday to customer service centres of major network providers, including MTN and Airtel, confirmed the issue.
Customer service representatives who spoke with The PUNCH said they had seen an influx of 9mobile subscribers attempting to migrate due to persistent network issues.
“The problem is from 9mobile. They are having issues with their network. When customers come and fill out the porting form, we send a text code to them, and they are supposed to respond. But it doesn’t go through at all,” one of the customer service personnel, who spoke to our correspondent in confidence due to lack of authorisation to speak to the media, stated.
Mobile Number Portability, introduced by the telecom regulator in 2013, allows telecom users to switch providers while retaining their phone numbers.
The process typically involves submitting a request at the preferred new network provider’s service centre—after which the receiving operator initiates a transfer request to the subscriber’s current provider.
NATCOMS President, Deolu Ogunbanjo, told The PUNCH, “If porting is no longer possible, as reports suggest, it is a serious issue.
“We will escalate this to the NCC because Mobile Number Portability is a regulatory initiative designed to protect consumers. NCC should be made aware of this, and I am confident they will look into it.”
For more than 24 hours after enquiries were sent, 9mobile’s Lead Public Relations Officer, Chineze Amanfo, and the NCC’s Director of Publicity, Reuben Mouka, failed to respond to requests for comment.
A senior industry source familiar with the situation alleged that 9mobile might be intentionally frustrating porting requests.
“I have it on good authority that 9mobile is restricting customers from the backend. For the past month, no one has successfully ported from 9mobile to MTN, whereas subscribers are switching from Airtel and Glo to MTN without issues,” the source, who asked not to be named due to lack of authorisation, stated.
Recent NCC data shows that mobile number portability surged by 190 per cent in January 2025, with 8,708 subscribers switching networks compared to 2,998 in December 2024.
9mobile recorded the highest customer losses, with 6,716 subscribers leaving the network for competitors. Despite this increase in porting activity, only seven new customers joined 9mobile in January.
Subscribers have in recent times reported chronic network outages, automatic data renewals without consent, and poor customer service—issues that have driven many to competitors like MTN and Airtel.
In July 2024, a six-day nationwide outage occurred after multiple fibre cuts and infrastructure damage, affecting voice and data services. 9mobile apologised and assured customers that its technical teams were working on restoration.
In December 2024, a fire at 9mobile’s main data centre in Lagos, coupled with fibre cuts and vandalism of critical infrastructure in Lagos and Abuja, led to another round of severe disruptions, leaving subscribers without reliable connectivity. (Punch)
