Dead end business process?

Recently I obtained a long term assignment and was told that Vodacom reception was not good in the area - a necessary communication for research and emails!

I did not wish to use MTN so opted for Cell-C, doing a sim swap on a vital cell phone number - NOT my personal Vodacom cell number!

Two weeks ago I established that Cell-C simply does not work in my assignment area but that Vodacom's signal was passable. so I returned to Vodacom to have the same vital number re-assigned to me. The necessary swap communication was sent to Cell-C and I waited for their OTP. |i never received the OTP because my cell phone with that Cell-C sim card in it was ******.

I went to Cell-C to get a duplicate sim card but was told that the number had been wiped out. So I went back to Vodacom to be told that the number had been wiped from their records too. A subsequent call to Customer Care resulted in a dead end too!

Surely SOMEONE in Vodacom can enable my number once again for me?