People in Uganda will spend the 2021 general elections day without the convenience of the internet after service providers simultaneously shut it down Wednesday evening.

In a statement released by MTN Uganda on Wednesday, local telecommunications service provider in the country received a directive from the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) to suspend operations of all internet gateways.

“In compliance with its national telecommunications Operator License, we have implemented the directive,” the statement from MTN Uganda reads.

The shut down comes days after UCC directed telecommunication service providers to block their clients’ access to social media platforms, a move that spared outrage among citizens and criticism from tech giants like Facebook an twitter.

In his last address, President Museveni confirmed the social media suspension but attributed it to interference of global tech giants in Uganda’s issues after the platform suspended National resistance Movement (NRM) leaning accounts.

“I am not going to let them decide who is good or who is bad,” President Museveni said.

The shutdown has not not only affected people’s ability to receive real time information on the on-going elections but also business including the media and online retailers. NTV Uganda has had to rely on text messages and phone calls to keep Ugandans updated after some of its communication tools were rendered useless.

“We have had to dust off the dictionaries and have people running to and from various polling stations with memory cards to keep the continuous flow of information,” NTV Uganda social media specialist Gistin Angarukiremu says.

It is unclear when the shutdown will end as service providers say that UCC has not yet made that communication to them.