Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says its licensees should comply with applicable regulatory instruments to ensure quality service and consumer protection.
The Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Umar Danbatta, said this on Tuesday in Abuja, at the “Meet the Regulator Forum’’ with the theme “Promoting Regulatory Compliance Through Dialogue.”
Danbatta, who was represented by Sunday Dare, the Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management of the NCC, stressed that the commission would maintain and strengthen its uncompromising compliance with all regulatory instruments, particularly in the areas of quality of service, consumer protection and fair competition in relevant communication markets.
“We will also insist on sound internal governance along the lines, detailed in the code of Corporate Governance for the industry. “These are our minimum expectation, and I trust that we can continue to count on your cooperation in this regard,” he said.
Danbatta added that following the commission’s mandate; NCC developed the strategic vision of being “a responsive, world-class communication regulatory organisation.
“It is true that our efforts in this direction have been globally acclaimed, but we have no doubts that we can only continue to pursue this vision by effectively meeting the aspirations of our key stakeholders represented here.
“We should ask ourselves: is the `operator-regulator partnership’ healthy enough to sustain successful operations in the industry? “So, we should ask ourselves as regulatory professionals if we are working with the regulator to prepare our industry for the future.
“How do we expect the regulator to facilitate successful innovation when we have not been faithful to our existing obligations? He asked.
The NCC boss requested the participants to give the commission feedback from on specific areas that could improve the commission adding that it is crucial in the collective efforts of the stakeholders in the industry to take it to greater heights.
Contributing, Yetunde Akinloye, the director, Legal and Regulatory Services, NCC, in her remarks, said that the forum was to enable the commission to meet different stakeholders in the telecommunication industry to understand how the commission’s processes run.
She noted that the forum was to ensure better working relationship with all the entities the commission regulates. She added that “some of these regulated entities are not complying with rules and regulations, terms and conditions of their licence, and the laws that set up the industry.
“This is why we brought them to this forum because we don’t want to be seen as a regulator that is always coming down hard and sanctioning.
“So, we want them to understand us and make adjustments,” she said.
Adeshola Yakub, the technical manager, Solid Interconnectivity Services Ltd, who was one of the participants, lauded the forum as “engaging and informative.”
He said further that compliance was an important part required of the licensees, even as he insists the exercise would educate them on the demands of the commission.
