Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), the apex regulator of telecoms in Nigeria has debunked the news flying around that “3 million New Lines had been added in Q1 2001.” Over the years, the NCC’s position is clear which is to ensure that the telecom sector scales and grow which the current EVC, Engr. Danbatta has demonstrated over time.
The Commission stated that “We wish to use this opportunity to clarify that the Nigerian Communications Commission and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) are the only authoritative sources of authentic data on the Nigerian telecommunications sector. Indeed, the Commission is well aware of the critical need to make accurate and up-to-date data available to all Stakeholders.”
The regulator added “The Nigerian Communication Commission encourages all Stakeholders to visit its website for authentic data on the sector and to refer all doubts to its Public Affairs Department to avoid unnecessary controversy and/or inadvertently misleading other Stakeholders who may rely on such reports. The Commission also urges Stakeholders to disregard any information on subscriber data different from those presented in the Commission’s website.”
“Consistent with Section 89 Subsection 3(d) of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 (NCA 2003), the Commission is mandated to monitor and report on the state of the Nigerian telecommunications industry, provide statistical analyses and identify industry trends with regard to services, tariffs, operators, technology, subscribers, issues of competition and dominance, etc. with a view to identifying areas where regulatory intervention would be needed. In view of this, the Commission regularly conducts studies and surveys and produces reports on the telecommunications industry, and telecommunications operators are obligated, under the terms of the licenses, to provide the NCC with such data on a regular basis for analytical review and publishing”, the regulator opined.
The sector has recorded loss of active telephone lines and NCC is not happy for this development. This policy by the Minister has stunted the industry while some stakeholders are saying that the industry has regressed back. The commission isn’t happy about this. With over 21 million lines lost, this means that billions have been lost to the sector due to SIM Card ban alone and the multiplier effects is enormous. This has led to job loss in the industry, inability of the Telcos to meet up to their obligations and this is exactly what the regulator is perturbed about hoping that the minister rescinds on such a regressive policy.
Due to this policy of SIM card ban, investor confidence is going down, investors are seeing this as a policy summersault and when such a report of “Nigeria Records 3 million New Lines in Q1” NCC did the right thing to make the Nigerian consumers understand the true state of things by debunking the news. Having earned trust and credibility in the industry, the EVC of NCC, Engr. Danbatta has demonstrated over the years that he is desirous of bringing immense development and advancement to the telecom ecosystem which he has been doing.
During the time of SIM Card ban, the policy was described as unfortunate. Telecoms loose about 50 billion naira monthly due to this single policy ban.
The position of the telecom regulator has been clear, to ensure that there is high level of adherence and transparency in the industry. It is only the regulator that has the sole responsibility to furnish Nigerians with such data.
ANTHONY NWOSU
The sector has recorded loss of active telephone lines and NCC is not happy for this development. This policy by the Minister has stunted the industry while some stakeholders are saying that the industry has regressed back. The commission isn’t happy about this. With over 21 million lines lost, this means that billions have been lost to the sector due to SIM Card ban alone and the multiplier effects is enormous.
