The Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) has reiterated its resolve to place telecom consumer interests as the core of its priorities.
It also hinted that GSM subscribers using illegal SIM cards (pre-registered SIMs) have up to the end of this month (February) to link their National Identification Numbers to such lines or get deregistered.
Speaking in Abuja Monday, the Executive Vice-Chairman of the NCC, Dr Aminu Maida, said the commission under his leadership is consumer-centric.
He also said the agency would equally strive to protect the interests of service providers in accordance with the Act establishing the commission and also ensure revenue for the government in like manner, describing this as “delicate balancing” that must be achieved.
In promising to be accountable, Maida urged the media for fairness in its reportage of the commission’s activities.
He said: “We need to put back smile on the faces of the consumers. There is going to be transparency around tariffs, we are still working out the modalities.
“Two of them(service providers) have concluded plans to engage audit firms to audit their billing systems. Another area that came up strongly during our engagement with stakeholders is our digital processes, this has become critical to our ways of doing things. That’s an area that we want more awareness.
“I’m dwelling on the consumers because that’s the heart of the services we render. If we don’t put smile on the faces of the consumers, there will be challenges.
“We have a responsibility to make the industry more resilient. We need to strengthen the institutions that support the commission in achieving its corporate responsibility. Cross industry collaboration is an area we are working on.
“The interests of the licensees must be in accord with the Act, which must also be protected.
“Remember, we have to look out for more investors. And on the side of the government, we are also expected to generate revenue.
“On the whole, we will be plugging into the systems to know what’s available and to marry all seamlessly.
“This is my approach to guide the industry in the next couple of years. We will support government’s digital public infrastructure drive, bridge the rural digital-urban divide and grow the telecom industry.
“My plea is that we are one family, let’s be fair to each other, hold us accountable and give us a chance . You know this is a challenging time. I am not a messiah, but we can do a little to make things better.”
On security concerns, particularly how illegal SIM cards are being used to perpetrate crimes, the NCC boss said there’s existing collaboration among the security agencies and other enablers, adding that soon criminals won’t get enabled.
Also peaking on illegal SIM cards, the Director of Compliance, Monitoring and Enforcement, Efosa Idehen, recalled that the decision to link SIMs to NIN decided in 2021 was not yielding expected results due to “value chain compromise” now being addressed.
