‘112’ is Toll Free Number, says NCC
‘ECC’ in Ogun, Imo, Kano 14 Others Ready
The Federal Government through the Nigeria Communications Commission(NCC) has said Nigerians can begin to put into use the newly introduce communication line number ‘112’ as the country’s National Emergency Call Number.
The duo, Hon. Minister of Communications, Dr. Isa Ali Pantami, and the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigeria Communication Commission; Prof Umar Danbatta confirmed the national emergency number has the direct line to the Emergency Communication Centre that has been created by the government.
The government officials explained that any distress call on ‘112’ is toll-free and the communication will be initiated and terminated at the callers routing via any of the Emergency Communication Centres (ECC) that have been created in some selected states in the country.
Speaking further during the ECC facility presentation recently in Kastina state, they made known that the ECC projects, the first which was recently presented in Kastina state, have been created in 17 different locations in the country to facilitate the quest for maximum security of lives and properties leveraging modern communication technology.
They confirmed that telecommunication and Information Communication Technology sector are working in tandem with the federal government to leverage technology in the fight of insurgency and other forms of threats to lives and properties requiring emergency intervention from the federal and state governments.
Pantami, who commended the Governor of Katsina, His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Aminu Bello Masari, for his efforts in fighting insurgency in the state, said the Federal Government under President Muhammad Buhari is very much focused on the three agenda of fighting insecurity, corruption, and improving the economy.
The Minister stated that “our commissioning of the ECC first in Katsina, is the home state of the President is in demonstration of our loyalty to him and a commitment by the Ministry through the NCC to use technology to support his three-points agenda, as I earlier said.”
The Honourable Minister said the centre will also be used to curb corruption through the integration of whistle-blowing communication process into the facilities.
In his remarks at the forum, Governor Masari commended the Ministry for the initiative. He stressed that the project will help to complement the efforts of the State Government towards fighting insurgency and all forms of criminal activities in the state and subsequently help to improve the creation of a peaceful and enabling environment for economic and social activities.
According of the Chairman, NCC Board of Commissioners, Otunba Olabiyi Durojaiye, the Federal Government is concerned about fighting insurgency, kidnapping, as well as mitigating road accidents, fire outbreaks or any other life-threatening occurrences in the country, stating that the ECC is very central to coordinate emergency responses.
“while successive governments had made various efforts at different times towards achieving this important ECC project, we are happy that its actual implementation is coming to reality under the current Board of the NCC through the support of Mr. President and the various state governments,” he said.
According to the EVC, the ECC is equipped with facilities such as eleven workstations, a server system that receives and processes 112-calls from members of the public and then dispatches the calls to the appropriate agency that has responsibility to attend to the specific emergency. The Centre also has public power supply from the national grid, and six dispatch workstations for the response agencies.
“Hence, the ECC is a one-stop shop by which members of the public can dial ‘112’ from their phone using any mobile network to access help from any response agency such as the Police, the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Fire and Ambulance Services, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA),” he said.
According to the EVC, the ECC is a facility equipped with 11 workstations, a server system that receives and processes 112-calls from members of the public and then dispatches the calls to the appropriate agency that has responsibility to attend to the specific emergency. The Centre also has public power supply from the national grid, and six dispatch workstations for the response agencies.
Officials of NCC, the Ministry of Communication, Katsina State government, representatives of security and emergency agencies and private security outfits among other stakeholders witnessed the project presentation in Kastina.
NewswatchNigeria can confirm that the ECC project is ready to be commissioned in 16 states, which includes; Ogun, Kano, Plateau, Anambra, Enugu, Kaduna, Benue, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Oyo, Edo, Ondo, Ekiti, Kwara, Adamawa and Imo states.
