Most of the customers who were noted to be from Lagos and Abuja were left stranded as both call and data networks were abruptly cut off causing disruptions in both communication and destabilizing other connections like cash transactions.
The MTN service breakdown was first noticed in the early hours of the afternoon and lasted for some hours after then with many customers taking to social media to lament the development.
According to most of the customers who complained online, the main issue was bothered around their inability to call, text, or access the Internet especially as the day was mainly about communication with loved ones.
The development was made worse by the cash swap policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, which made many people confused about using the old naira notes thus making them solely dependent on electronic transfers.
According to the Punch, a source at MTN blamed the outage on a fibre cut which they suspected may have occurred on one of their lines.
The source said, “Yes, the network was down for over one hour. We are still trying to understand exactly what happened. But preliminary reports suggest a fibre cut. We don’t know the extent yet, but I can confirm Lagos and Abuja.
“We are monitoring and trying to resolve this as quickly as possible. It’s sad on a day like this.”
In an apology sent to customers, MTN regretted the development and apologised for “the disruptions caused”. The telco also confirmed the issue has been resolved and services restored.