Telecoms subscribers under the aegis of the Association of Telephones, Cable TV, and Internet Subscribers (ATCIS) have kicked against the demand by telecoms operators to increase tariffs on their services.
The group, which spoke at the weekend during a press conference in Lagos, called on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) not to accept the call for telecoms tariff increase, as demanded by telecoms operators, insisting that such a hike would bring an additional burden to telecoms subscribers.
Telecoms operators under the aegis of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), had written to the NCC, asking for a 40 per cent hike in voice and data tariff, to enable them to cope with the high cost of delivering telecoms services across the country.
Though the NCC has not reacted to the demand, ATCIS members have called on the regulator not to consider such demand, which they said, would be inimical to telecoms growth.
The National President of ATCIS, an advocacy group, Mr. Sina Bilesanmi, said that subscribers would resist the suggested hike in telecoms tariff and called on NCC to turn down such requests in the interest of subscribers.
According to Bilesanmi, the press conference was organised to address emerging issues in the telecom industry, especially the relentless clamour by telecoms operators to hike the tariff of services across the board, including call and data tariffs.
“ATCIS-Nigeria, the only leading telecoms subscriber advocacy body, is concerned that this strident call at this time is most unwelcome. We see it as most insensitive as it will impoverish telecoms subscriber members more given the realities on the ground.
“While we understand the industry faces challenges, including rising operational costs and the need for infrastructure investment, we believe this increase places an undue burden on consumers, many of whom are already struggling with the current economic situation. The telcos have blamed the rising cost of diesel for powering their base transceiver stations (BTS) as one of the major reasons for the current clamour for tariff hikes. But these are not enough reasons to increase tariffs,” Bilesanmi said.
“We say no to any hike without the proper consultation with consumer advocacy bodies such as ATCIS that have over 200 million membership strength across Nigeria,” he added.
Bilesanmi said it was obvious that the federal government and the NCC should have put some infrastructure and good policies in place for them to have a working business environment.
He however said the telcos shouldn’t resort to subtle blackmail to get the approval of the NCC to hike tariffs.
NEC member of ATCIS, Deacon Simon Oladipopo, advised telecoms operators not to transfer the burden of managing telecoms services onto innocent subscribers.
Emma Okonji
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