Buhari Govt Tackle Telcos Over Tariff Increase

The Federal Government has condemned telecommunications operators in the country over the proposed 40 per cent hike on calls and data tariffs in the country.

Naija News reports that the Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) had said the tariff hike was necessary considering the rising cost of business in the country.

In a letter signed by its Chairman, Engr Gbenga Adebayo, ALTON said the decision was made due to the economic downturn that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

The telcos said the fee for calls will increase from N6.4 to N8.95 per second (N53.7 per minute) while the price cap for SMS will increase from N4 to N5.61.

Reacting to the development, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) said it had yet to approve the demand of the telcos to increase data and call tariffs following their request letter.

In a chat with Daily Trust, NCC spokesman, Ikechukwu Adinde, said that there is a laid down procedures for the review of tariffs in the country.

Adinde stated that there will not be any tariff increase until the procedures are followed.

“The operators themselves know that we have laid down procedures for tariff review. We have yet to do any of the procedures so how can they talk of an increase?

“For now, there will not be any price review in the industry until the procedures are followed,” he said.