The rumour, that Digicel would be reclaiming extra credit it was making available to subscribers who purchased telephone calling cards for prepaid cellular phones, was said to have led to a system jam as people tried to use up their credit before the expected recall.

Harry Smith, Digicel's marketing director, said yesterday, the company was embarking on a new promotion ­ '$1,200 for 2004' ­ which would see customers getting $100 extra credit for every first phone card they buy each month for their pre-paid cellular telephones. Post-paid customers would also enjoy the benefit if they pay bills in full and on time.

"Some thought it was an error and decided to take advantage of the error, hence the congestion. It's not that there is something wrong with the system. Once they realise it's not an error, everything will calm down," he said.

LINES WERE JAMMED

The promotion is being advertised in the media today but word began getting around and lines were jammed after customers scrambled to take advantage of extra credit, attempting to put on credit at the same time as well as use up the extra credit ahead of it being reclaimed by the company, as the rumour claimed. Digicel has more than one million subscribers.

However, by yesterday evening, there were signs that the situation was returning to normal.

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