The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has successfully pressured the Federal Government into reducing the recent telecommunications tariff hike from 50% to 35%.
The decision followed a heated meeting of a 10-man committee comprising government and NLC representatives at the office of the National Security Adviser, NSA, on Friday, February 21, 2025.
A formal communiqué announcing the reduction is expected to be released on Monday.
The meeting lasted three hours as labour representatives insist on a complete reversal of the tariff hike. After intense negotiations, the government and the Nigerian Communications Commission,
NCC, conceded to a 15% reduction.
The battle against the telecom tariff hike began on February 12, when NLC condemned the move as a breach of trust, citing a previous agreement with the Federal Government and NCC.
To demonstrate its opposition, the union launched a three-hour daily boycott of major telecom providers—MTN, Airtel, and Glo—between 11 AM and 2 PM, effective from February 13 until the end of the month.
At its Central Working Committee, CWC, meeting in Lokoja, Kogi State, on February 11, NLC leadership called on Nigerians to halt data purchases from telecom companies, describing the tariff hike as “corporate exploitation.”
Despite the partial reduction, NLC remains adamant that telecom operators must revert to the old tariff. The union has warned that if the new rates are not reversed by the end of February, a total shutdown of telecom operations nationwide will commence from March 1, 2025.
Labour leaders are mobilizing state councils, industrial unions, and civil society groups for mass action, urging Nigerians to resist what they describe as an “onslaught against workers and the masses.”
Reported by Century Post.
