NATCOMS Boss Hails FG’s Plan To Sanction Operators

Chairman, Nuj, Bauchi State Council, Comrade Dahiru Mohammed (right), presenting a set of computer to the State Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Mohammed Dhamina, in Bauchi, recently. Photo: NAN

The President, National Association of Telecom Subscribers (NATCOMS), Chief Deolu Ogunbanjo, last Tuesday hailed the Federal Government’s plan to sanction any telecom operators that failed to improve its services before January 1, 2014.

Ogunbanjo told newsmen in Lagos that the proposed sanction had become necessary because of poor services being offered to subscribers by the operators.

He said that subscribers were not getting value for their money on the voice and data services provided by the operators.

The official hoped that the sanction would force operators to put in place more infrastructure to improve services.

The Tide reports that the Minister of Communications and Technology, Mrs Omobola Johnson, has promised that the ministry will collaborate with the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) to sanction operators rendering poor services or collecting money for services not rendered.

Johnson said that the ministry, in conjunction with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the CPC, would stop telecom operators from providing poor services.

Ogunbanjo said that the planned sanction would positively affect telecom services provision.

He regretted that the customer care units of some operators were no longer responding adequately to enquiries from subscribers.

“Customers find it difficult to get responses to their enquiries through the customer care numbers.

“Even when a call is through to them, the response you get is, `All our agents are currently busy, please call back’,’’ he said.

He advised the operators to open more customer care units to hasten responses.

“Now that subscribers are increasing, there is the need for adequate customer care agents to attend to customers’ issues promptly.

“Customers cannot enjoy better services from telecom operators if they cannot get responses to their enquiries,’’ Ogunbanjo said.

He decried destruction of base stations in some areas, and advised state governments to put in place machineries to protect telecom infrastructure in their states.