The Senate has threatened to summon telecommunications operators and the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, over persistent poor network services and alleged unjustified deductions from subscribers’ airtime.
The lawmakers issued the warning during plenary on Tuesday after expressing concern over the growing complaints from Nigerians who continue to lose money through failed calls, dropped connections and other network disruptions.
President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, said the Senate Committee on Communications would first engage the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to explain the recurring problems affecting telecom subscribers across the country.
He warned that if the commission fails to provide satisfactory answers, the Senate would summon the minister, the NCC Executive Vice-Chairman and major telecommunications operators to account for the poor quality of service.
Akpabio said many of the losses suffered by subscribers could have been prevented through effective regulatory oversight, stressing that the Senate would not hesitate to take further action if there was no improvement.
The motion was sponsored by Senator Tahir Monguno and presented by the Deputy Senate Majority Leader, Senator Oyelola Ashiru.
Monguno said Nigerians regularly experience failed calls, dropped connections, inaudible conversations and unstable networks, forcing many subscribers to make repeated calls and spend more airtime without receiving the expected service.
He argued that consumers should not continue to pay for services that telecommunications companies fail to deliver.
The Senate consequently directed its Committee on Communications to engage the NCC and relevant operators, investigate the complaints and recommend measures that will protect subscribers from further losses.
Akpabio also rejected a proposed four-week timeline for the committee’s report, insisting that Nigerians deserve urgent action because the poor quality of telecom services has become a daily burden for millions of users.
