The Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, defended the recent 50 per cent tariff hike for telecom services, explaining that the decision was influenced by broader economic factors, such as rising inflation and increased costs of imported goods.
His comments came during an appearance before lawmakers on Tuesday, where he was also discussing the ministry’s budget.
The tariff hike has faced strong criticism from advocacy groups and subscribers, who have threatened legal action in response.
“Rising inflation and operational costs are the reasons for the recent tariff increase,” Tijani, who is also spearheading the country’s ambitious 90,000-kilometre fibre project, explained to the lawmakers.
“What most people don’t pay attention to is that historically, we’ve left investment in telecommunications infrastructure to private companies. And these private companies will only go to where they can make money. They use a data set, called night-time satellite data, which will look down on the economy at night.
“They will see where light exists, and that’s where they will put their money. Because those lights, for them, indicate economic activities,” Tijani added.
Recall, The President of NATCOMS, Adeolu Ogunbanjo stated on Tuesday that the association would engage with the telecom regulator, the NCC, this week in an effort to negotiate a reduction of the 50 per cent tariff hike to a more manageable 10 per cent.
Ogunbanjo further explained that if the meeting with the NCC does not take place or fails to produce satisfactory results, NATCOMS will initiate legal action next week.
He also clarified that while the association could accept a modest tariff increase of 5 to 10 percent, any increase beyond that would be considered unacceptable.
On its part, SERAP issued a 48-hour ultimatum to reverse the tariff increase, calling it “unlawful.”
The organization, through its official X (formerly Twitter) account, demanded that the Tinubu administration and telecom companies immediately reverse the “unlawful” 50 per cent increase in call and data costs.
They threatened to take legal action if the hike is not reversed within 48 hours.
Meanwhile, subscribers argue that the tariff hike disproportionately impacts low-income earners, who depend on affordable call and data services for their daily activities.
The NCC had approved the adjustment on Monday, with telecom companies seeking a 100 per cent increase, citing the need to address escalating operational costs in the industry.
