Friday, February 28, 2025 - The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has called off its planned protest which was scheduled for March 1, 2025
This decision was made after an agreement with the Federal Government on
a 35 per cent increase in telecom tariffs.
The decision was met with approval by the National Association of
Telecommunications Subscribers on Thursday, with the group urging the
government to introduce further relief measures for telecom operators.
Recall that on January 20, 2025, the Nigerian Communications Commission
announced a 50 per cent increase in telecommunications tariffs, marking the
first major adjustment in over a decade.
Telecom operators, struggling with rising operational costs due to
inflation and currency depreciation, had originally proposed a 100 per cent
hike before government intervention led to a review.
Sources within the NLC revealed that negotiations with the Federal
Government led to a compromise, reducing the proposed tariff hike from 50 per
cent to 35 per cent. A 10-member committee was set up to finalise the
agreement.
An NLC insider confirmed the development,
stating, “Have you not heard that an agreement has been reached between
the NLC and the FG? The 50 per cent hike in telecom tariff has been reduced to
35 per cent as agreed by the 10-man committee.”
When asked whether this meant the planned protest would no longer hold,
the source responded, “That should be obvious.”
In a prior discussion with The PUNCH, the Chairperson of the Lagos State
chapter of the NLC, Funmi Sessi, criticised the Federal Government for
approving the 35 per cent tariff hike, describing it as an additional burden on
struggling Nigerians.
“How can the Federal Government be the one
determining prices? This is an anomaly,” she argued.
Sessi maintained that any tariff adjustments should be implemented
gradually and should not exceed 15 per cent, given the prevailing economic
difficulties.
Meanwhile, NLC’s Public Relations Officer, Upah Benson, disclosed that
the union’s National Executive Council would meet today (Friday) to deliberate
further on the issue.
The President of the National Association of Telecommunications
Subscribers, Adeolu Ogunbanjo, welcomed the reduction of the initially proposed
50 per cent tariff increase to 35 per cent.
However, he called for additional measures to lessen the financial
strain on consumers.
Responding to reports of the tariff review, Ogunbanjo noted that NATCOMS
was not included in the committee that deliberated on the adjustments.
“I believe it is 35 per cent, but this is
based on what I heard from sources,” Ogunbanjo told The PUNCH. “That
information has been out there since Monday.”
He attributed the reduction to consumer advocacy efforts but urged
telecom operators to consider further cuts to alleviate the impact on
subscribers.
“We fought, and at least a 15 per cent reduction is
something,” he said.
The Nigerian Communications Commission, along with key industry groups
such as the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria and
the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria, has yet to respond
to requests for comment on the matter.
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