By Clifford Agugoesi, Editor-in-Chief
On March 29, 2010, the office assistant to my former employers, Africa Telecom & IT, where I had the privilege and opportunity of becoming pioneer editor, Joy Etim, brought a letter requiring my attention. It was from the Nigerian Communications Commission(NCC) and signed by the then Head, Media and Public Relations, Reuben Muoka. Then, he was under the Director of Public Affairs(DPA) Mr. Dave Imoko. Mr. Telecom Revolution, Dr. Ernest Ndukwe was rounding off his tenure as the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer(EVC/CEO) at the Commission Mr. Muoka was to rise to become the Director of Public Affairs before retiring early this year.
The letter reads in part: “The Nigerian Communications Commission is collaborating with Lancaster Conferences, UK to host the Nigeria-UK Telecommunications Summit from 13-14 May 2010, at Savoy Place, London, UK. Being that my birthday fell on May 14th, I considered it a fitting birthday gift. The event is expected to showcase the Nigerian telecom experience and potentials in the global community. Experts, manufacturers, vendors and service providers are expected to attend and exchange ideas and information through conferences and exhibitions.
“As part of the efforts of the Commission to improve on the skills, knowledge and experience of ICT correspondents and editors in Nigeria by exposing them to this and similar events at the international level, Management has approved the nomination of Mr. Clifford Agugoesi, among Nigerian ICT editors and correspondents to participate at the above event…” The Commission sponsored my participation at the event, to which I was and still am eternally indebted to it. I am sure, my colleague and friend at the Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association, NITRA(formerly with Leadership Newspapers) and now publisher of the Sentinel Online, Apostle Jones Ailuorio, among others, would say the same thing. Of course, after putting in 10+ years founding the magazine and growing it to an international brand of note, I have since moved and now working for Cyber Era NG.
I did not want to take chances, with communication in Nigeria and the UK, so I shelved my other two devices(no adverts for the makers, for personal reasons) in preference for two variants of the Anabel Mobile brand: the PS185Y and PS100. Being single SIM devices, I slotted in my MTN SIM into the PS185Y and my Airtel SIM into the PS100. These were my most active lines but I took both with me for the journey, because of both networks’ amazing roaming partnerships, worldwide. Inspite of the roaming capabilities of these networks, I was advised to pick up a local SIM while in the UK to minimize roaming costs.
I heeded that advice, because, it was the best in the circumstance. My MTN line was my first line, but because my credit balance was not enough, I decided to remove my MTN SIM for the yet-to-be purchased local SIM in the UK. Let me reveal one secret about the Igbo people south east of Nigeria at this point: they do not play with anything or brand that has real or imagined sensitivity to their name or culture aspect. There are narratives making the rounds that an Igboman gave Singapore its name. How? I was told that this Igbo trader travelled to the Asian hub country for business and when the deal between him and his Singaporean partner did not please him, he exclaimed in his raw Igbo dialect: Nnaa, si ngaa puo(meaning, my friend, what a hell are you talking about, get out of here!). So, within the circles of protagonists of the narration, Singapore is a corruption of the Igbo trader’s si ngaa puo. There are many more curious narratives like this, but I promise, I won’t bore you further with those.
Because, we cannot, not communicate, I went straight to the nearest supermarket to purchase a local SIM card. I had options: Vodafone, Virgin Media, 02, 03, EE and Lebara, etc. I asked the mart attendant to advise me on the network that would help me communicate seamlessly with Africa. “Go for Lebara”, he said. I did not bother to ask him whether Lebara was an MNO or MVNO. His voice was stellar I could sense he was validating his personal experience with the network. The Igboman in me resurrected. Lebara? Lebara ya anya! This makes an Igbo sense. In Igbo language, lebara means many things: examine, interrogate, meditate, mediate, investigate, consider, et cetera. I went straight to the information section of the manual. Voila! Lebara has roaming partnerships with Glo Mobile, MTN, Airtel Nigeria and more. I did not hesitate to buy the Lebara line and in less than 5 minutes, I was calling home. Needless to bore you with more words. My experience with Lebara was simply amazing I didn’t throw away my SIM, years after arriving back to Nigeria, hoping to put it to good use on return trip to the UK.
Now, you can see why I was excited learning the same network has entered into Nigeria with a promise. Hello, Lebara, can you reactivate my redundant SIM?
Follow the link below on the Lebara promise, the regulator’s touch and the market appeal here: https://bhluemountain.com/2025/05/20/lebara-bets-on-voice-bundles-to-win-in-nigerias-20-billion-telecom-market/
