Help us deal with SIM card fraudsters - Consumer Advocacy Center to Government

The Consumer Advocacy Center in a press statement has called on government as a matter of urgency to aid in the implementation of a law to be able to deal with SIM card fraudsters.

This is due to the haphazard sales of SIM cards on the streets which makes it difficult to track documents for audit purposes. They are asking for the deactivation of cards found to have been improperly registered in the system in order to prevent these unlawful people from scamming innocent victims

The Consumer Advocacy Center, says they will follow due process to see this law is passed in order to get rid of such unscrupulous persons who hide under illegal registration cards to dupe citizens on a daily basis.

They are also asking government to punish Telcos whose platforms are used for such activities. This they believe will help deal with Sim card fraud menace.

Below is the Statement

PRESS STATEMENT

MON, 1ST APRIL, 2019

RE: GOVERNMENT TO CLAMP DOWN ON SIM CARD FRAUDSTERS

The Consumer Advocacy Center (CAC) welcomes the latest statement by the Government of Ghana on the need to strictly enforce the law on SIM card registration (L.I. 2006).

Yesterday's press conference by the Minister of Information, Hon Kojo Oppong Nkrumah is in agreement with the concerns raised by Ghanaian consumers and an admission that those in charge of the registration of SIM cards are violating the Ghanaian law.

We, therefore, call on government to abolish the sale and registration of SIM cards on the streets and direct that all SIM cards be sold at designated offices of the Telcos, where copies of the identification documents can be kept for auditing purposes.

We again ask government, to as a matter of urgency, commission an audit of all registered SIM cards and deactivate cards found to have been improperly registered.

The Consumer Advocacy Center today repeat our call on government to immediately institute a legal regime that will compel Telcos to pay a fine, for allowing their platforms to be used to perpetrate fraud on consumers in the Telecom market. This call is appropriate in ensuring that the Telcos cooperate with government to block fraudsters from accessing the Telecom platforms.

CAC calls on government to focus some attention on consumer protection, just as it is doing for revenue generation in the Telecom market.

The Consumer Advocacy Center assures the general public that we will not relent in our efforts to ensure their protection in the Telecom market and as a result, we are initiating the necessary legal steps to get justice for the consumer in the Telecom community.

BENJAMIN ESSUMAN

Director, Corporate Affairs (CAC) - Ghana 0244708916 / 0207200111