February 17, 2025
By Idris Buba
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, has urged the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, to have a rethink about it planned March 1 shutdown of telecommunication services over the recent 50 per cent hike in tariff approved by the Nigerian communications commission, NCC.
Private Telecommunications and Communications Senior Staff Association of Nigeria and the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria, have also condemned the NLC’s planned boycott of telecom services and shutdown of telecom infrastructure, arguing that such actions would be detrimental to the telecommunications industry.
NSCDC spokesman, Babawale Afolabi, said the agency had deployed operatives to the base stations to prevent any illegal action by the protesters.
Tasked with protecting critical national infrastructure, including telecommunications, NSCDC, expressed concerns over the potential risks the NLC action could pose to public safety and national security.
The NLC, had announced its intention to shut down the operations of telecommunications companies across the country by March 1, 2025 if the tariff hike announced by the NCC, was not reversed by the end of February.
READ MORE; NLC Asks Members To Boycott MTN, Airtel, Glo, 9mobile Over Tariff Hike
The union directed Nigerians to boycott the services of major telecom providers, including MTN, Airtel, and Glo, daily between 11am and 2pm starting February 13 till end of the month.
In a communiqué signed by its President, Joe Ajaero and General Secretary, Emma Ugboaja, NLC accused the telecom operators of breaching public trust by implementing the tariff hike before the conclusion of a 10-man review panel’s deliberations.
The union also faulted the government for failing to protect citizens from corporate exploitation, arguing that the tariff increase represented a betrayal of public trust, given the earlier agreement to establish a committee to review the proposed hike.
However, the NSCDC urged the NLC to reconsider its planned protest, warning that any disruption to telecom services could expose the country to criminal activities and compromise national security.
Afolabi made it clear that the agency will not allow any action that could jeopardise the security of the nation.
He revealed that state commandants had been directed to maintain round-the-clock surveillance at telecom facilities, with a nationwide deployment of officers, including undercover operatives, to ensure the protection of these assets.
Citing the importance of telecommunications to national security, the corps warned that any disruption could result in vandalism and other criminal activities.
He added, “Already, the NSCDC commandant-general has directed state commandants to maintain round-the-clock surveillance in and around all the telecom masts in their locations.
“Also, there is going to be nationwide massive deployment of the officers and men of the corps, including undercover and intelligence operatives, to maintain peace and ensure that all the government and corporate organisations’ critical national assets and infrastructure are protected from the miscreants who might likely use the opportunity of the planned protest to carry out their criminal activities.’’
“Available credible intelligence already established the fact that the planned protest will be hijacked by hoodlums and that is why the NSCDC is on top of the situation,” he further stated.
The NSCDC called for dialogue to resolve the dispute and hoped that the NLC would reconsider its stance.
