If you live in Nigeria and use a smartphone, you already know the peculiar “wahala” of a network bar that suddenly disappears just when you are about to make an important bank transfer or join a Zoom meeting. For many of us, it feels like a personal attack from the service provider, but the recent “2025 Wrapped” report from the CEO of MTN Nigeria, Karl Toriola, shows that the problem is much deeper than we imagined.
The telecommunications giant revealed that it suffered a staggering 9,218 fiber cuts across the country in the year 2025 alone. When you break that number down, it means that on average, more than 25 different cables were being sliced every single day. As an editor who has followed the growth of our digital economy, I find these statistics both alarming and eye opening. It is not just about a slow internet connection; it is a full blown infrastructure crisis that is costing the nation dearly.
A deep dive into the nine thousand reasons why network failed us
The sheer scale of these fiber cuts is enough to make any business owner catch a headache. According to the details shared by the MTN boss, these incidents were the primary reason for the widespread network disruptions that frustrated millions of Nigerians throughout the year.
Fiber optic cables are essentially the veins and arteries of our digital life, carrying data at high speeds across thousands of kilometers. When one is cut, it creates a ripple effect that can knock out service in entire neighborhoods or even states. While the company managed to resolve over 1.6 million customer complaints during the period, the root cause remains a recurring nightmare.
It is a classic case of one step forward and two steps backward, where the effort to provide 5G speeds is constantly undermined by physical damage to the underground cables.
The double trouble of road construction and deliberate vandalism
We often blame the “network people” without looking at what is happening on our streets. A huge portion of these 9,218 cuts happened because of road construction activities where contractors dig up the earth without proper coordination with telecom operators. However, there is a more sinister side to the story.
Beyond accidental cuts, 211 MTN sites were hit by direct theft and vandalism as of late November 2025. This is the real “koko” of the matter. Criminals are stealing batteries, generators, and even the cables themselves, oblivious to the fact that they are cutting off the lifeline of their own community.
It is a self sabotaging act that forces companies to spend billions of Naira on repairs instead of expanding coverage to rural areas where people are still struggling to find a signal.
Translating over one million complaints into better customer service
In the midst of this infrastructure war, the human element remains the most important part of the story. MTN recorded 1,624,263 complaints across their call centers and social media platforms in 2025.
While that number is massive, the CEO noted that every single complaint was treated as a signal to do better. Despite the “bad market” created by vandals, the company still saw its subscriber base grow to 85 million people by September. This shows that Nigerians are resilient and hungry for connectivity, but their patience is not infinite.
Taking responsibility is a good first step, but the real victory will come when the government and citizens come together to protect these assets. We must move past the era of seeing telecom masts as “their property” and start seeing them as our collective national treasure.
Safeguarding our digital future as MTN marks twenty five years
As MTN Nigeria prepares to celebrate its twenty fifth anniversary in 2026, the focus is shifting toward long term protection. President Bola Tinubu has already designated telecom infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure, which means anyone caught damaging these cables will face the full weight of the law.
This is the kind of strong action we need to see. For us to enjoy a truly digital Nigeria where payments go through instantly and students can learn online without interruption, we must stop the bleeding of our fiber networks.
The goal for 2026 is clear: less digging, less stealing, and more talking. If we can reduce these thousands of cuts, the dream of a seamless network will finally become a reality for every Nigerian from Lagos to Maiduguri.
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