ABUJA – The end or rather the reduction of GSM aided crime might be around the corner as the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) gears up to begin a mandatory SIM Cards registration exercise, billed to begin in May. Currently, there have an unprecedented criminal activities perpetrated with the aid of GSM phones; and the ordinary Nigerian has been the worst hit.

Recently, the NCC organized a Consumer Forum with the theme: “SIM Card registration: A veritable tool for consumer protection.”

According to the commission, if all SIM cards are registered, it will become easy to track whoever uses GSM phone for criminal activities. With this scheme, everybody is expected to register his/her SIM Card from May 2010.

Observers have described this plan by NCC as a step towards the right direction and hoped that the scheme will be effectively pursued. In the developed countries, you cannot just purchase a SIM card off the shelves as it is done in Nigeria. For you to own a GSM phone, the SIM card has to be duly registered.