Nigeria's 112 Emergency Number Fails Live Test Despite APC Claims, Video Trends
- An APC chieftain challenged a Channels TV presenter to call 112 live on air to prove the emergency number worked
- The call failed to connect during the broadcast, with viewers also reporting they could not reach the number
- The APC official attributed the failure to a network problem and said the nationwide rollout was expected by March 2027
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Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over eight years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues
FCT, Abuja - Nigeria's 112 national emergency number failed to connect during a live test on Channels Television on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, exposing a gap between government claims and the actual state of the service.
The incident unfolded on Politics Today, hosted by Seun Okinbaloye, while Alwan Hassan, a member of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, was making the case for the achievements of President Bola Tinubu's administration.
Source: Facebook
Hassan listed the 112 emergency line among those achievements and urged Okinbaloye to dial the number on air.
In the video shared by @channelstv, Hassan said:
"Take your phone and call 112. Nobody knows about this. We used to hear it in America, 911. Call 112 now, put it on the speaker, and they'll ask you what's your emergency… Thanks to APC government," Hassan said.
Okinbaloye dialled the number but the call did not go through. "This number is not working," the presenter said.
Hassan blames network, defends service
Hassan said the failure was likely caused by a network issue and maintained that he had personally reached the line on multiple previous occasions.
The presenter countered that other calls were connecting from the same location, and said viewers were also sending in messages to confirm they could not get through to 112.
Hassan went on to describe how the system was designed to work: calls would be received at emergency communication centres in the caller's location, where operators would assess the situation and contact the appropriate response agency.
Medical emergencies would be referred to ambulance services, while security incidents would be passed on to the nearest police station.
He also said the government was building a system to automatically identify a caller's location on a dashboard, removing the need for callers to give their addresses during emergencies.
Nationwide launch pushed to March 2027
Hassan said the emergency centre in Abuja was ready, but that President Tinubu had instructed that it should not be formally launched until centres across the country were aligned.
He said the nationwide alignment was expected to be complete by March 2027.
When Okinbaloye pressed him on whether 112 was among the administration's unfulfilled promises, Hassan acknowledged that more time was needed.
"We'll fulfil them. We'll fulfil them with time. This is why we're asking for more time," he said.
The Federal Government directed relevant agencies in September, including the Nigerian Communications Commission, Nigeria Police Force, National Emergency Management Agency and Federal Road Safety Corps, to draw up an operational roadmap for rolling out 112 nationwide.
That directive came after the National Economic Council approved 112 as Nigeria's single universal toll-free emergency number, covering medical, security, fire and other emergencies.
112: Nigerians share experience using national emergency number
Meanwhile, Legit.ng repored that Nigerians gave their thoughts about the durability and function of the 112 national emergency numbers.
This was after a request was made by the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, for them to recount their experience.
However, there were mixed reactions and several opinions about the value of using the national emergency number.
Source: Legit.ng
