By Adekunle Adekoya

Last Wednesday, my phone beeped; a text message had arrived, but it wasn’t the first time that day. Picking the phone, the message read: “Pls be careful in receiving calls, espacially (sic) new numbers. Over 10 people lost their lives in Wukari LGA Adamawa state 2day in answering calls. Dis are d no (sic) 091411 only 5 digit (sic). Past (sic) it 2 others pls 2 save lives.”

After reading the message, a number of thoughts swirled around my mind, and as I pondered issues, a colleague came into my office, wondering whether I’d received such text. Answering in the affirmative, he wondered what fresh mischief evil-doers are out to wreak on our country and all of us.

Part of the issues I ruminated on after reading the text message is that highly gifted mischief makers must be at work, testing some new-found knowledge.

Number plans

Before going on, we may be informed that telephone networks operating in the country deploy numbering plans with the following sequences: Visafone — 07025, 07026, 0704, Starcomms — 0819, 07028, 07029, 0709, MultiLinks — 07029, MTN — 0803, 0703, 0706, 0806, 0810, 0813, 0816, Glo — 0805, 0705, 0807, Etisalat — 0809, 0818, Airtel — 0802, 0808, 0812, 0708, Zoom Mobile (Reltel) — 0707, and for record purposes, 0804 — MTEL.

NITEL numbers have area codes that begin from 01 (Lagos) to 089 (Yenagoa). Then where did 091411 come from? A plausible answer is that it might have been an Abuja NITEL number; Abuja’s area code is 09. Then which network deploys four-digit lines?

A quick survey of the National Numbering Plan, a public document available on the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) website shows that under the numbering plan, Abuja as a numbering area has the 09 trunk code with seven digits; no network could be operating with four digit lines.

Wukari 041

Further survey of the National Numbering Plan however indicates that Wukari, in Adamawa State as a numbering area has the trunk code 041, with five digits operable. In the Wukari area, three exchanges are listed — Wukari, Wukari DIG, and Gembu.

They have the directory numbers range 20000-20499, 21000-21999, and 40000-40199 respectively. And the number 091411 was said to have been the cause of at least 10 deaths in Wukari LGA. But the Wukari exchanges are five-digit exchanges; 091411 is six!

Well, written American style, 091411 is September 14, 2011. Is that the answer? If yes, how did a date written US style, when we operate the British style become a telephone number? And did that number ring at all?

Forget about it

Anyway, the NCC, through Reuben Muoka, its Head of Public Affairs reassured us all, in a statement last week.

“Technically, it is not possible for such a thing to happen because even the voice that you receive at the other end of the phone undergoes many conversions. It is therefore unimaginable that somebody will die while receiving a call. It is only very gullible people that will believe such a rumour”, he said.

I hope that is all there is to it, even though a thorough forensic investigation of the incident would be desirable as I am sure some very gifted minds whose talents can be channeled into more productive uses, were at work.