The Nigerian Senate has directed its Committee on Communications to investigate alleged unauthorised airtime deductions by telecommunications operators amid persistent complaints of poor network services across the country.
The investigation will examine complaints from subscribers who lose airtime despite experiencing failed calls, dropped connections, interrupted conversations and other network problems. The Senate also directed the committee to invite the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and telecommunications operators to establish the extent of financial losses suffered by consumers.
The resolution followed a motion sponsored by Senator Tahir Monguno, representing Borno North, and seconded by Senator Ned Nwoko, representing Delta North, during plenary on Wednesday.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio asked the committee to engage the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, alongside the NCC leadership, and submit its findings within four weeks. Akpabio, however, warned that the Senate could summon the minister, the NCC Executive Vice Chairman and telecommunications operators if their responses failed to address subscribers’ concerns.
“Four weeks is too long, but we can allow it. If they didn’t satisfy us, then we will have to take it at a committee of a whole and invite all the operators,” he said.
He added that the Senate would involve the minister and the telecommunications regulator if the committee’s engagement with them failed to produce satisfactory answers.
“Including the minister overseeing the NCC and also the executive vice chairman of NCC, to ask this pertinent question because the public is complaining and our job is to make sure that we tackle the concerns of the Nigerian public.”
The Senate President also blamed inadequate regulatory supervision for some of the recurring network failures and financial losses experienced by subscribers. He said the commission needed to strengthen its oversight of operators to ensure Nigerians received the services they paid for.
“And also the losses they suffer that are avoidable. Some of these things are because nobody is really supervising them well, and also, we need to talk to NCC, and after that, we will take it with the minister and then discuss with operators. If we don’t have any change, we’ll know what to do thereafter,” he added.
Presenting the motion on behalf of Monguno, Senator Lola Ashiru, representing Kwara South, said telecommunications services had become essential to individuals, businesses and public institutions across Nigeria. He noted that millions of subscribers depend on mobile networks daily but frequently experience unsuccessful calls, sudden disconnections, unclear conversations and network interruptions.
According to the lawmakers, these problems often result in airtime deductions without subscribers receiving effective communication services. The motion also raised concerns about consumers having to make repeated calls to establish connections, leading to additional expenses caused by network problems beyond their control.
Monguno argued that Nigerians should not pay for telecommunications services that operators have failed to deliver effectively. He maintained that “payment for airtime is payment for a service and not merely an attempt to establish communication”. The senator further noted that although individual deductions might appear small, the combined losses could become substantial when calculated across millions of subscribers. He said low income earners, traders, students and small business owners were particularly affected by the situation.
The Senate also reminded the NCC of its responsibility under the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003, to protect consumers and enforce acceptable service delivery standards. While acknowledging that occasional network failures were possible, lawmakers questioned the effectiveness of regulatory oversight given the persistent complaints. Seconding the motion, Nwoko described the investigation as timely, noting that telecommunications challenges affected “virtually every Nigerian”.
The Senate subsequently adopted the motion and directed its Committee on Communications to investigate the complaints and submit recommendations for further legislative action within four weeks.
