Tigo apologises after millions are rendered incommunicado

Dar es Salaam. Over ten million Subscriber Identification Module (Sim) cards for Tigo Tanzania were rendered useless for a good part of the day on Sunday, thanks to a network failure.

It was impossible to make phone calls, send short message service (sms) and send money via the telecom firm’s Tigo Pesa platform as the network was idle for almost the whole of Sunday, leaving clients wondering what the company was up to.

The communication failure raised complaints from users, including Tigo Pesa agents and ordinary customers.

The failure also affected Sim Banking to those clients who depend on Tgo Pesa to deposit or withdraw their cash with their commercial banks. Similarly, it affected some electronic purchases as well as internet access using Tigo.

A statement issued by the company noted yesterday that the service cut was as a result of “reasons beyond its control related to multiple fibre cut” that affected its network.

“We regret the inconvenience this service interruption caused and wish to reassure our beloved customers that our commitment to quality, reliable and affordable service remains unflinching,” said Tigo General Manager Diego Gutierrez.

The statement further said the problem had been fully solved and all services restored. The company went on to compensate its clients with airtime, sms and a data bundle as it sought to go an extra mile in soothing them for the hard time that they went through on Sunday.

“We are refunding you with six minutes of cross-network airtime, 40 sms’ and 1 megabyte which you will have to use until midnight today because you failed to use our services yesterday,” reads the firm’s massage, sent to its subscribers yesterday.