By Ganiyat Ganiyu
Owing to the rising cost of doing business and the safety of infrastructure, telecommunications operators in the country have threatened to increase their tariffs.
The Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria, ALTON, said it is considering varying tariffs to some ‘unfriendly telecommunications states’.
The Chairman of ALTON, Gbenga Adebayo, told journalists on Thursday in Lagos that the high cost of energy and security of telecom workers was hampering its operations.
“We are concerned that unless there is an intervention to save this sector, operators will have no choice than to begin a process of price review.
“Operators are very concerned about the rising cost of diesel and its implications on the general cost of business,” the ALTON chair said.
He said the government needed to do a lot more to keep the nation safe and keep telecom workers safe.
“We reaffirm our commitment to working with the security agencies in order to get necessary support for national security.
“We now need protection from sub-national government and agencies to stop the interference of smooth operations of telecom services,” he said.
“The impact of these outages will gradually spread to the states mentioned above and if no action is taken within the next few days, a total outage of telecommunication sites in all these states will be catastrophically experienced.
“To the best of our knowledge, our members have settled all statutory levies and taxes due to the Kogi government and have taken necessary steps to comply with local laws that govern business activities within the state,” Mr Adebayo said.