By Victor Ahiuma-Young
More than a month after the Federal Government, the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, and Organised Labour reached an agreement to reduce the telecommunications tariff hike from the 50 per cent initially approved by the government and the NCC to 35 per cent, the government and the NCC have remained silent on the 15 per cent reduction.
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To make matters worse, the telecommunications operators have not only gone ahead with the 50 per cent tariff increase as reflected in their rates, but also show no signs that they intend to implement the 15 per cent reduction anytime soon.
Recall that Organised Labour, through the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, had forced the Federal Government and NCC to reduce the telecommunications tariff hike from 50 per cent to 35 per cent after NLC threatened to shut down the telecom operations and the NCC, following what it perceived as exploitative economic policies amidst excruciating suffering, hardship, and deepening poverty.
The government had earlier set up a 10-man committee comprising five representatives from the government and the NLC, to deliberate on the contentious issue of the tariff hike within two weeks and report back before any final decision would be made on the new telecom tariff structure.
Consequently, on Friday, February 21, 2025, the committee, at a meeting held in the office of the National Security Adviser, NSA, that lasted about three hours, agreed on a 15 per cent tariff reduction.
According to sources, in line with the terms of the agreement, an official communiqué announcing the tariff reduction was supposed to be released from Saturday, February 22.
It was gathered that the meeting started around 4:00 pm. and ended about 7:00 pm where NLC representatives insisted that the tariff hike must be withdrawn.
Sources informed that after much pressure from NLC representatives in the 10-man committee, the government and NCC buckled and agreed on the 15 per cent reduction which the government or NCC ought to have announced the next day.
Sadly, up till the time of this report, no such announcement has been made.
Suspecting that they have been lied to by the government, leaders of the NLC are not taking the non-announcement or implementation of the 15 per cent tariff reduction lightly.
Vanguard gathered that Labour leaders have resolved to directly confront the NCC and telecommunications operators next week.
Though it was gathered that the date for the commencement of the industrial action against the NCC and telecom operators has been decided, and mobilization ongoing, it is being jealously guarded.
One of the leaders of the NLC told Vanguard, that: “We have received directives to commence mobilisation since last week. In fact, the date for the commencement of industrial action against the NCC and telecommunication operators’ offices across the country has been fixed. We have been warned not to disclose the date because the plan is to take all concerned by surprise. We are not giving any notice because we thought we had resolved this matter over a month ago. It is as if we have been scammed. Therefore, we have decided to confront the matter head-on.”
The NLC, had on February 12, expressed outrage over the hike in tariff by telecommunications companies, despite an earlier agreement reached with the Federal Government and the NCC, and demanded an immediate reversal of the hike to avoid unpleasant consequences.
According to the NLC: “If the telecommunications companies fail to revert to the old tariff by the end of February 2025, a total shutdown of their operations nationwide will commence on March 1, 2025.”
To show its seriousness, the NLC declared that, as a first step in resisting the arbitrary tariff hike, it directed that from Thursday, February 13, 2025 (today), workers and other willing citizens should boycott the services of MTN, AIRTEL, and GLO daily between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. until the end of February 2025.
Leaders of the NLC, in a communiqué at the end of their Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting in Lokoja, Kogi State, on Tuesday, February 11, urged workers and citizens to suspend the purchase of data from the telecommunications companies, which have also become one of their greatest tools for exploiting Nigerian citizens.
The communiqué, signed by the President and General Secretary of Congress, Joe Ajaero and Emma Ugboaja, respectively, directed NLC State Councils and industrial union affiliates to immediately sensitize and mobilise their members and the general public within their jurisdictions.
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