Mobile telecommunications service providers are lobbying the Senate on several issues bordering on the survival of their business with multiple regulations, multiple taxations and the need to declare information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure as critical national infrastructure topping the agenda.
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The mobile operators have cited the unfriendly operating environment occasioned by the different agencies of government trying to regulate them and are also seeking the National Assembly to come out with a law that will declare telecommunications equipment as critical national infrastructure that should be protected.
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The operators who are lobbying members of the Senate said since the commencement of mobile operations in 2001, the visibility of the telecom sector has been on the increase, thus attracting increased attention of government agencies at federal, state and local levels.
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Already, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) regulates the telecom sector but other agencies of government like the National Environmental Standards and Regulatory Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Consumer Protection Council (CPC), National Lotteries Commission, and their state counterparts also regulate one aspect or the other of the operators’ business. The mobile operators also accused government agencies of excessive demand on Rights of Way and Trenching Permits at all levels.?
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Mr. Rajan Swaroop, chief executive officer, Airtel Nigeria has called for the declaration of telecom infrastructure as Critical National Infrastructure just as he canvassed for the discouragement of multiple taxes and fees by states and local governments.
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