Osamagbe Imadiyi
On Sunday, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps cautioned the Nigeria Labour Congress against its intention to shut down telecommunications on March 1 in reaction to the recent 50% tariff increase. The NLC’s proposed boycott of telecom services and shutdown of telecom infrastructure was also resisted by the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria and the Private Telecommunications and Communications Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, which both claimed that the measures were misguided and could hurt the sector.
Babawale Afolabi, the NSCDC’s spokesperson, stated in an interview on Sunday that the organization had sent agents to the base stations in order to stop the demonstrators from taking any unlawful action. The NSCDC, which is in charge of safeguarding vital national infrastructure, such as telecommunications, voiced worries about the possible threats to public safety and national security that the NLC action might present.
The NLC declared that if the tariff increase announced by the Nigerian Communications Commission was not rescinded by the end of February, it would shut down the operations of telecom companies nationwide. The union ordered Nigerians to abstain from using the services of major telecom companies, such as Glo, MTN, and Airtel, every day between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. beginning February 13 and lasting the entire month.
The NLC accused the telecom operators of betraying public confidence by enacting the tariff increase prior to the conclusion of a 10-member review panel’s deliberations, in a statement signed by its president, Joe Ajaero, and general secretary, Emma Ugboaja.
The NSCDC cautioned that any interruption to telecom services could expose the nation to criminal activity and jeopardize national security, so it suggested that the NLC reevaluate its planned protest. Afolabi stated unequivocally that the agency will not permit any action that might endanger national security. He disclosed that in order to guarantee the safety of these resources, state commandants had been instructed to keep up 24-hour surveillance at telecom facilities and to deploy officers, including undercover agents, across the country.
