In an effort to prevent the national protest over the 50% increase in telecom tariffs that is planned for February 4, 2025, the House of Representatives Committee on Communications is interacting with the Nigeria Labour Congress leadership.
The Nigerian Communications Commission approved a 50% pricing rise for telecom providers citing current operating costs.
Disappointed by the outcome, the NLC promised to launch a national demonstration while urging the National Assembly and the Federal Government to temporarily revert to the previous price.
The union noted that the rally would serve as a warning on the dangers of imposing such “an unfair increase on a struggling population earning a minimum wage of only N70,000; a population that has suffered an outrageous hike in the price of petrol, high cost of food, hike in electricity tariff, among sundry hardship in the past few years.”
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Speaking in an interview on the issue, the Chairman of the House Committee on Communications, Peter Akpatason, said the panel was already reaching out to the NLC to shelve the planned mass protest.
Akpatason who represents Akoko-Edo Federal Constituency, Edo State, noted that the planned protest, if allowed to hold, would only bring about more hardship for Nigerians.
He said, “The committee that I chair is already reaching out to the leadership of labour and the industry operators, to avert any action that would rather bring more hardship to the people.
“We had earlier met with the industry operators, who explained the numerous challenges bedeviling the sector, such as inadequate funding for infrastructure upgrades to address the consumers’ complaints about declining quality of services and poor coverage. I will advise that we look at the issues objectively before embarking on any protests.”
Similarly, the Director of Public Affairs of NCC, Reuben Mouka, told our correspondent that the commission was making an effort to engage the NLC over the new telecom tariff.
“We are trying to engage them,” he said.
