I read with dismay the publication by Guardian on how the Federal Government might move to 'shut down' the internet in a bid to halt the growing #EndSARS protest. As someone who worked in the telecommunication industry for a few years, I can tell authoritatively that the publication is no different from what one would hear at newspaper stands or something that could pass as a worthy beer palour gist. Simply put, the piece is only a figment of the writer's imagination.

There is no denying that the FG is control-crazy and has, often times than not, sought to silence and restrict the masses from either critising or airing their opinions. This can be seen in its desperate push for the social media bill, the controversial hate speech bill and the heavy monitoring of media programmes on both radios and tvs. I read the piece and found out that the move is only a speculation and it was only mentioned twice in the lengthy article published by Guardian.

Most people probably don't understand how the telecommunication industry work deeply and I would love shed some light on this and why the government does not have the power to 'shut down the internet', as a once insider:

1. The 'internet' is not social media

To most people, mentioning the word 'internet' means social media platforms that we use on a daily basis but this is very far from the truth. The piece painted this picture as well simply because the protest is largely fuelled and coordinated mostly on Twitter. The article implied 'shutting down the internet' as shutting down social media platforms such that Nigerians will no longer be able to access them. The internet, in this age and time is more than that. The internet has now become the very life that we live, breathe and about 85%-90% of our lives revolves around it without knowing it. I'll explain why later.

However, does the Nigerian government have the power to even shut down social media access in Nigeria? The simple answer is no! Why?

2. ISPs in Nigeria are private entities though government regulated (not controlled)

All internet service providers in Nigerians are private entities even though they are all regulated by one and the same body - the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) (note the word 'regulate'). The primary function of the NCC is to set performance standards, regulate supplies of telco services and promote a healthy competition among all ISPs. The presence of the NCC is why networks or ISPs cannot offer unlimited internet bundles or data plans. While some have the financial muscle to see it work, others don't, thus the NCC forbids it in order to promote a healthy competition and not allow indecent monopoly as against what applies in the manufacturing sector.

With the above in mind, the government only makes sure the players are fair and not dictate how the game is played. While these ISPs are not the government's, they cannot shut down their internet services as it is their largest revenue source. Voice comes second but falls far behind, no thanks to WhatsApp calls and other platforms that allow for communication using internet access. The government can not tell these ISPs to shut down and they will. Their revenues will nosedive instantly.

3. 'Shutting down the internet' will cripple all spheres of the economy

I don't want to talk about the complicated flow of base stations but your ability to browse the internet is because your ISP's base station closest to you allows it. You won't be able to access 4G internet even though your phone and SIM supports 4G if the only base station closest to you is not equipped for 4G. That means the base station that serves your immediate environment will need to be shut down if you are to be prevented from browsing the internet and this will impact both shared and dedicated bandwidth

Another thing to note about data connectivity is that internet bandwidths are of two types;

A. Shared bandwidth: The bandwidth every SIM subscriber is placed on. This type of bandwidth is what you use on your phone, Wi-Fi and because it is shared, it is unstable and fluctuates, depending on some factors. This is why you might get up to 2-4Mbps download speed sometimes while at other times you might get 80kb download speed. All SIM-based data are placed on the shared bandwidth.
B. Dedicated bandwidth: Also called dedicated internet service. As the name implies, it is dedicated in that you buy a particular bandwidth capacity (upload and download) depending on your company's strength, operations and budget. Say you purchase 2Mbps, you get that exactly and it is deployed from the closest base station to you and dropped in your server room to be distributed withing your organization via LAN. This type of bandwidth requires a mast, an air-conditioned room where your server will sit and is mostly used by huge companies or corporations, HQ churches, banks or financial institutions, government houses, media houses, the aviation sector, telecom themselves, payment processors, government institutions, etc. You must have at least seen a mast in a bank, a company, a headquarter church, a government house you visited and so on

The presence of the dedicated bandwidth is why the government can not cut access to the internet (say it can) because the moment that happens, all sectors, industries and organizations that are dependent on the internet to run their everyday activities will all be grounded. Broadcasts on TV will be difficult and live reporting like we have in modern time won't happen. Will the government record any loss at all? The answer is 'yes, the loss will be HUGE'. Imagine all sectors of the economy being paralysed just for a single day. The loss in one day can't be recouped if the system works round-the clock the a week and this is no exaggeration. Here:

1. Banking activities will be crippled. You will neither be able to withdraw or send money. ATMs will go offline and a whole new level of chaos will emerge. At this point, your debit or credit card becomes useless.
2. Commercials planes will not be able to fly in our airspace because travellers will neither be able to book their flight nor get checked at the airport, except they do BRT style at the airport.
3. Payment processors will go out instantly, crippling millions of businesses across Nigeria.
4. Schools, particularly their ICT units will go out immediately.
5. Government agencies and parastatals will go blind as well.
6. Communications will be overwhelmed and calls won't go through (case study: Every new year, around 12:00 AM - 3:00 AM.
7. Electricity will shut down and those on prepaid will be the worst hit because their meters have data SIM cards in them that communicate with DISCOs they are mapped to. Even if you have 1 billion Naira cash at hand, you will not be able to recharge your account.
8. The list is endless.

Simply put, we will all moonwalk to the stone age.

NB: Although dedicated bandwidths users can be cut off without affecting other users within a given environment, the same does not apply if shared bandwidth users are cut off.

But can the government jam or restrict access to social media platforms?

Yes and no. Yes, in the that they can armtwist all ISPs to ban certain social media networks for the time being else their licences will be revoked but it is dicey; the government do not control these organisations so bossing them around will not be effective, particularly in a democratic setting. There will be a lot of legal battles concerning this and there is a huge chance that the government won't win. EVEN IF IT DOES, IT WILL BE EMPOWERING EVERY ONE WHOSE DAILY BREAD HAS BEEN AFFECTED INTO JOINING THE ONGOING PROTEST. That, I am sure is a path they would not want to tread.

Can I use a VPN if the internet is shut down?

The possibility of 'shutting down the internet' is almost 0% but assuming it happens, can one use a VPN to remain online as claimed by many? The simple answer is no. VPNs need an active internet service to work and what they do is only to reroute your home network through a private server in order to access some country-restricted domains, links or websites by masking your native IP and location.

So how do I stay or remain online should the internet gets 'shut down'?

You can't, except you have your own ISP the government does not know about. MainOne and GloOne are the primary data sources that feed almost other ISP in the country. At best, you can call friends and family abroad to tell them of the development so that an emerging story can begin but this isn't a likely scenario to happen.

Wrapping up

A whole lot is dependent on the internet. Its absence will cascade into an unimaginable chaos and will empower the already growing protest in the country. The government will lose out heavily as all powerful sectors of the country will be crippled instantly. The Guardian's piece over the speculation is worthy of a beer palour or a bus stop newspaper gist. The government does not have the power to shut down the internet.


Lalasticlala

I just dey laugh at that move. Hahahahaha

They can't fit it.

I can't log-on to twitter.....
Is anyone else experiencing the same thing?

portplus:
I can't log-on to twitter.....
Is anyone else experiencing the same thing?

I believe it is a network thing. If it has been long you have been experiencing this, restart your device.

Switching off internet means no more banking activities, in fact, it means shutting down the entire nation!
But government can shut down Facebook and Twitter and the citizens could also access those through the back door during the shut down

portplus:
I can't log-on to twitter.....
Is anyone else experiencing the same thing?

my own is flawless here, as ever

Dem know where the internet switch dey?

Why una dey over-rate these morons na?

Apt analysis.

Artiiclebeast:
Dem know where the internet switch dey?

Why una dey over-rate these morons na?

They might know ooo. Don't underrate them o

Sanchez01:

They might know ooo. Don't underrate them o

Forget those idiotic analog rogues. The only thing they know is the "off button" on light switch.

Artiiclebeast:


Forget those idiotic analog rogues. The only thing they know is the "off button" on light switch.

LMAO! Recall they deactivated an account via the CBN recently and the only crime was that the account was bring used to receive funding for the protest? Let's all cross our fingers to see what will happen. They might be willing to cripple the national financially just to get what they want, we can't tell just yet.

Gen Buhari wan bite more than he can chew

OP is very correct.God bless you well for this piece.The unprecedented chaos that will follow will cause the government wipe out if this is really implemented.Infact, Nigeria will cease to exit by the time the smoke finally clears up.

Home based and International IT and consultancy firms that want to "cash-out" must having been sending proposals to the government for a fee o.

Artiiclebeast:
Dem know where the internet switch dey?

Why una dey over-rate these morons na?

:I can't log-on to twitter.....Is anyone else experiencing the same thing?my own is flawless here, as ever

I just learnt a whole lot.

Shutting down the Internet is simply impracticable.

Thanks op.

you people dont know nothing....fg can force any company in nigeria dealin with this internet things to shvt their service down....

nigeria is still a souverein nation....if china or nord korea can do it,nigeria can do it too....

FG don dey fear




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