NCC reiterates kingship of telecom consumers

THE Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Eugene Juwah, has reiterated the commitment of the commission to satisfy the need of telecom subscribers in the country, reports CHARLES OKOH.

Speaking at the 61st Telecom Consumer Parliament hosted in Lagos by NCC, last week, he said the commission has a second level customer care centre where consumers who are not satisfied with their operators could call to register their complaints.

“We as regulators would always be on the side of the consumers and would try to be on their side when they are being cheated,” he said.

Juwah said that NCC has a second level customer care centre where consumers of telecommunication services could call in and get their grievances resolved, stressing that they can do this by calling the Consumer Affairs Bureau help desk, only when the operators do not meet their demands.

“We can take it up on your behalf and try to resolve it with the operators. You are kings and we would do everything to satisfy you all,” he said.

Juwah said the commission would soon begin massive campaign to enlighten the people on the impending Subscribers Identification Module (SIM) cards registration exercise, adding that the commission waited for voters’ registration exercise to end so as to confuse the people.

“You know that NCC funding for the SIM card registration was approved just in December, 2010 and we just issued contracts to seven organisations for the exercise and we are about unfolding our campaign for it,” he said.

He urged Nigerian to understand that there is need to give a space when voters’ registration was going on.

“We did not want to confuse the two. So, very soon the campaign would begin, our materials are being prepared,” he said, revealed that the exercise would begin from May 1,” he said, just as the commission has been given a deadline of six months to complete the exercise.

On number portability, the NCC boss said the commission would in May license another operator for the exercise.

On the desirability of the SIM registration, the National President, Consumer Rights Advocacy Networks (CRANET) Dr. Martins Iwuanyanwu, enjoined subscribers to embrace the exercise owing to its benefits.

“My view is that it should not be only the SIM cards that should be registered. All telephone lines should be registered because a CDMA line could also be used for crime. So, Nigerians should embrace it so that it can be used to check crimes perpetrated through the use of telephone lines. I think there should have been a common pool rather a situation where the GSM operators are doing their own and the NCC is doing its; it is not tidy enough, they can share information at the end of the exercise,” he said.

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