Nigeria's SIM card fiasco takes a turn In the past month, I have reported on the decision of Nigeria’s Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy to suspend the sale and registration of new SIM cards. It was a decision that cost people and multinational companies money. Despite the brilliant analysis by several publications, the minister, Dr Isa Pantami, held firm and insisted the decision was for the good of national security. On Friday, he backed down from that position, with the ministry announcing that the sale of new SIM cards can now begin. But the ministry’s change of heart has come at the expense of some new trouble for the minister.