An aggrieved customer of MTN Nigeria is
heading for the courts over the alleged
violation of his privacy by the country’s
dominant mobile services provider.

Emeka Ugwuonye, a US-based lawyer and
activist, decided to file a lawsuit after he was
forced to fingerprint before he could have his
SIM registered and reactivated. Ugwuonye,
who is presently in Nigeria, had had his lines
deactivated for failing to register his SIM cards
latest by June 30 as required by the Nigerian
Communications Commission (NCC). He uses
MTN and Starcoms while in Nigeria.

Briefing members of the Due Process
Advocates (DPA), of which he is Group
Founder/Principal Administrator, Ugwuonye
last night vowed to be in court either tomorrow
or on Tuesday to file a lawsuit over the matter.
He said:

“I believe that indiscriminate fingerprinting of
people violates the constitutional rights to
privacy (4th Amendment for US and Section
37 of the Constitution for Nigeria). In any
event, fingerprinting should be serious enough
an issue that it requires the act of government,
involving consent, reasonableness, probable
cause, or consent and/or full disclosure as to
purpose and assurances against abuse or
misuse of the fingerprint data, or voluntary and
informed consent of the people.

“Yesterday, my two phones were deactivated
because I had not registered my SIMs. I went
to the offices of the phone companies to
register my SIMs. I filled out their forms which
called for my detailed information, including
my passport data page and my mother’s
maiden name. Also, they took my photograph.

And finally they tried to take my finger prints. I
objected to that. But they insisted that without
it my phone would not be reactivated, and
these are the phone numbers with which I
have conducted business and by which I am
known by my clients and friends. I was thus
forcibly fingerprinted against my protests.
“I further realized that this is what these phone
companies had been doing to Nigerians in the
name of registration of their SIMs. I find it
intolerable that such encroachment on privacy
rights has been occurring in this country. I
have therefore decided to file papers in court
either on Monday or Tuesday, seeking for an
injection and other reliefs against the phone
companies and any other party responsible for
such violation of rights.”

Speaking later with News Express, Ugwuonye
said he would likely file the suit before a Lagos
High Court.
“I would be asking the court for restraining
order, destruction of finger print data,
declaration that such practice violates
fundamental right to privacy, compensatory
damages for the trouble and anxiety they put
me through,” he said, adding:
“The amount will be modest. The whole goal is
to get a judgment that would form a basis for
other people to benefit. The whole thing
should be stopped. I will make the NCC a party
to the lawsuit. This is a representative acting
in some way because if I get judgment, it
would not only me that would benefit from it.”