The House of Representatives has asked the Ministry of Communications, innovation, and Digital Economy to suspend the approval granted to telecommunications companies (telcos) to increase tariffs by 50 per cent.
Gatekeepers News reports that the lower house of assembly passed the resolution during plenary on Tuesday following the approval of a motion of urgent public importance.
The motion was sponsored by Oboku Oforji, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmaker representing Yenagoa/Opokuma federal constituency of Bayelsa state.
Recall that the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in January, approved telcos’ request to increase tariff since the last review in 2013.
Moving the motion, Oforji said tariff approval is not justifiable as consumers are grappling with economic hardship and poor network service delivery.
The legislator said telcos must improve their service delivery, and address the “poor network” before increasing their tariff.
He said, “The far-reaching effects of these price hikes will deepen financial struggles for the average Nigerian, threaten the country’s vision of leveraging technology to drive economic revival, exacerbate poverty and widen existing inequalities, hitting lower-income families the hardest.”
“Affordable connectivity is a must for progress in critical sectors like digital banking, education, healthcare, agriculture and e-governance.”
“Informal sector workers who depend on affordable mobile data to access gig work opportunities may find it harder to stay connected.”
“Those small businesses, which rely heavily on affordable telecommunication for operations, marketing, and customer engagement, will face additional financial burden. Imagine a scenario where a 10 percent increase is approved.”
“It is estimated that a 10 percent increase in telecommunications costs would reduce small business profitability up to 7 percent, potentially leading to the closure of businesses.”
Opposing the motion, Dominic Okafor from Anambra state, said a tariff hike is necessary for improved service delivery.
The legislator said telecom companies should be allowed to raise tariffs, though not by as much as 50 per cent.
The motion was adopted after it was put to a voice vote by Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house.
Subsequently, the house asked the Ministry of Digital Economy and Nigerian Communications Commissions (NCC) to “suspend the impending hike in telecommunications tariffs until their service improved.”
