Ahmed Bola Tinubu

The recent 5G license awarded to Mafab Communication Limited on 13^th December, 2021, a company owned by Dr. Musbahu Mohammad Bashir, by the Nigeria Communication Commission has once again brought to fore the widely held belief that Nigeria is a country where favouritism and other sentiments hold sway.

Since Mafab Communication Limited won a 5G license, tongues have been wagging around how a company with no history in telecommunication industry surfaced from the blues and won a coveted 5G licence.  Another allusion in the front burner is the actual ownership structure of the company.

While some said Tinubu is a major stakeholder, the communication regulatory agency Nigeria Communication Commission has come out to say that due process was holistically followed in the award of the licenses. But whether Ahmed Bola Tinubu has stake in Mafab Communication Limited or not, one thing is certain.  Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a master strategist who understands that morality has no place in power-game. 

Tinubu is believed to have taken mastery of using fronts, associates, friends, and relatives to achieve anything he intends to achieve. Although, some would say Tinubu is an opportunist and a ruthless entrepreneur with ravenous appetite for wealth and more wealth.  But who is not? We all are! Whatever impression anyone has about the Lagos big-man, it has not deterred him from vigorously pursuing his ambitions, the latest of it being to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari as president.

Allegations have been made that the former Lagos State Governor and the ruling party National chieftain is one of the veiled faces behind Mafab Communication Ltd, a company that suddenly emerged from the blues and raked in a license that big player in communication industry like Airtel could not get.

Curiously, a hitherto unknown Mafab Communication Ltd won one of the only two 5G, 2.3GHz spectrum band licenses offered for sale by President Muhammadu Buhari APC-Led Federal Government through the Nigeria Communication Commission after paying $273,600,000. Tinubu, according to a source who claimed to be in the know is a major stakeholder in Mafab Communication Ltd.  Plans and discussions are already on top gear with some USA and China based telecommunication equipment suppliers  that will supply and man the equipment for Mafab Communications Ltd, according to the latest update from the company.

Although the Nigeria Communication Commission has come to Tinubu’s defence through its spokesman, Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde that the subject company has the wherewithal to be awarded the said license, event that played in 2022 budget of the commission may be a cue to what played out.  Ahmed Tinubu’s wife, Senator Remi Tinubu is the Senate Committee Chairman on telecommunication. Communication technology is key in every election.  Mrs. Tinubu was believed to be instrumental in the passage of N633.4billion budget for NCC in 2022 fiscal year.

Tinubu critics have opined that Tinubu is a man who stubbornly brings his tomorrow before it comes.  To that extent, they said that Tinubu ensured that his wife becomes the Senate Committee Chairman because of the role she would be needed to play in the telecommunication sector and by extension, in his presidential ambition.  In fact, communication, and technology are everything for Tinubu in a time like this.

The question then arises, should Tinubu have a hand in Mafab Telecommunications Ltd 5G license, how can that favourably affect his presidential ambition?

5G network is an emerging network that has a lot of possibilities.  It guarantees greater speed and access to information at a higher speed.  As beautiful as the benefits, there are other sides that could be used to manipulate information to one’s advantage and to other’s detriment.  That includes the fact that small antennas could be installed in places of interest such as street lights, buses, selected collation centers, and other places of interest. This implies that the antennas may not be centrally located and monitored, thereby giving room for manipulation by those who intend to use it to their own advantage.

Part of the challenges associated with 5G which could be cashed in for electoral manipulation is that it may become difficult to access these locations owned by various stakeholders, which would hinder the large-scale deployment of this type of antenna. What it means is that companies of interest may be used to site small antenna in areas that it may favour their paymaster.  An integrated Internet of Things (IoT) could work in anyone’s favour. Again, this innovation, could as well mean that there would not be a cohesion in deployment of small cell antennas and this could be used in a candidate’s favour against others.

Furthermore, there have been allegations of security breach against Hauwei, one of the largest players in the 5G innovation. It is said that the software and firmware used in Hauwei’s devices can be leveraged for manipulation.

Whether Ahmed Tinubu has hand in Mafab Telecommunications Ltd 5G or not, communication and technology can be used for venal purposes