Boko Haram: GSM subscribers lament poor service in Borno, Yobe

Following the torching of over 37 Global System of Mobile Communication (GSM) firms' masts in Borno, Yobe, Bauchi and Adamawa states in the North-East sub-region of the country, communication and internet services on cell phones and GSM modems of subscribers in Maiduguri and Damaturu, were 'disrupted and cut off' completely for seven days , leaving Airtel and Etisalat as the only GSM firms rendering services to subscribers.Other GSM firms, MTN, Globacom, Visafone and Starcomms could not render communication and internet services, since the torching of their masts on September 10 and 13, 2012 in 15 wards and communities in Maiduguri and Damaturu by Boko Haram sect members.Having been frustrated by the disruption of communication services in these states, subscribers of the affected GSM firms thronged the offices of Airtel and Etisalat on Kashim Ibrahim Way, Maiduguri for the purchase and registration of SIM cards.At Ramat shopping complex, Airtel registered a total of 2,345 subscribers between Tuesday and Thursday last week.Speaking on the development, a staff of Airtel, Mallam Ibrahim Garba, said: 'The Boko Haram sect has caused us more harm than good with the destruction of our facilities. Today, our subscribers cannot communicate effectively. With the destruction of the GSM facilities of other communication firms,we had had to contend with increasing number of new subscribers to Airtel.'Also lamenting the low patronage of the recharge cards of affected GSM firms, Patience Joseph, a recharge card vendor at the Leventis Area, said: 'The patronage of MTN, globacom and Visafone recharge cards has dropped drastically.' because the people are not buying them, as most of my customers have resorted to the buying of Airtel and Etisalat.'She said that before the torching of MTN office and masts, she use to sell N15, 000 of MTN recharge card, but throughout last week, only N7,000 worth of same recharge cards were sold.
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