Despite the implementation of the controversial increase in tariff by telecom operators early this year, subscribers are now in a dilemma as they have continued to grapple with poor network service, with many of them facing hitches during voice calls and data usage.
In the past few weeks, customers of the major service providers have been experiencing declining quality of service (QoS) across the country.
The development has created frustration among customers who complain of the negative impact on their social and economic activities.
Early this year, telecom operators began implementation of a 50 percent tariff hike after the January approval that was granted to them by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
The adjustment, capped at a maximum of 50 percent of current tariffs, though lower than the over 100 percent requested by some network operators, was arrived at, taking into account ongoing industry reforms that are expected to positively influence sustainability.
With the tariff increase, Nigerians had expected that they would be enjoying seamless services as a consolation for the new rates they are paying.
Painfully, the reverse seems to be the case, as the providers services have become epileptic in many parts of Nigeria.
Speaking with Daily Independent, a Lagos-based businesswoman, Mrs. Jumoke Ayofeso, said the state of telecom service has not been encouraging enough, despite the tariff increase.
“I can understand what is going on in the country. For about two weeks now, I find it difficult to make calls with ease.
Even when the call goes through, a lot of disruptions do occur that make both the caller and the receiver of the call not hear each other clearly.
In fact, it is very frustrating. I think when they hike their rates the network service would improve. But what we are noticing is like as soon as they increase the tariff, their networks start going worse,” she explained.
Early this month, some telecom services consumers in Abuja challenged network operators to improve their services to match the recent hike in their tariffs.
The subscribers said despite the increase in subscription rates mobile networks could remain epileptic for hours without any meaningful results.
For Usman Akintola, the current network status in the country is not encouraging. He said the situation is getting worse. “The situation is causing frustration for many Nigerians, especially where the network was bad before. I think they should wake up to their responsibilities. Government also should call them to order.
Many people are losing money through this epileptic service. There is a high rate of drop calls, slow video downloading and streaming,” he said.
Another subscriber, a telecom infrastructure contractor in Lagos, Henson Oruma, said the declining service quality is quite discomforting for many people.
He disclosed that the challenges are as result of upgrades some service providers are carrying out. He said: “There have been complaints across the country because of the poor service.
But I believe the development will be for some time. When the upgrades some of the telecom companies are carrying out are completed, I believe there will be significant improvement.”
Expressing his concerns over the poor service, National Association of Telecommunications Consumers (NATCOM) President, Deolu Ogunbanjo, said the service being offered by the network operators has become so bad that subscribers now lament openly.
He added that the telcos, on their part, complained about their constraints to expand capacity.
He said: “Service delivery has been so bad. We are taking it up with them. They cannot raise the tariff and still be offering poor service.”
Prior to the controversial tariff increase, telecom operators under the aegis of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), promised subscribers that the increase would enable them to embark on infrastructure development and network expansion that would lead to improved telecom service delivery across networks.
ALTON Chairman, Engr. Gbenga Adebayo, further explained that the expected improvement in service would not be immediate but assured Nigerians that with time, service quality would improve.
According to him, “So, what the tariff hike will do for us is that it will bring the industry out of the woods, because really and truly, we were in a bad situation, and the sector was dying gradually.
Now that we have this tariff review in place, we need to begin the recovery process that will improve telecom services.
“We will now start our recovery process as an industry, part of which will be to put at the forefront customer satisfaction and quality of service.
Given this new development, we need to go back to rebuild, to optimise systems, and then ensure that we deliver services that are best-in-class to the subscribers.”
