According to a report by The Nation, on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ordered the full removal of the 5 per cent excise duty on telecommunications services across Nigeria.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says this step will provide instant relief to millions of mobile phone users and internet subscribers.
NCC Executive Vice Chairman, Dr. Aminu Maida, revealed this development while addressing journalists in Abuja.
He explained that although the tax was earlier put on hold, Tinubu has now completely scrapped it as part of his administration’s tax reform plan.
Maida noted that the president was firm on his decision when the matter came up for discussion.
According to him, Tinubu openly rejected the idea of burdening Nigerians further with such a tax.
The NCC chief added that he was impressed to see the president’s words reflected in the new legislation.
The excise charge was first introduced under the previous administration but sparked widespread criticism from citizens and stakeholders.
Tinubu suspended the levy later, arguing that it stifled both consumers and businesses.
The latest decision to abolish it entirely is now seen as a strong message of his commitment to lowering economic pressure on citizens.
Alongside the tax reform, the NCC is introducing new consumer driven initiatives to improve service delivery.
Among them is a public network performance map that will track real time internet speed, reliability, and latency nationwide. This feature is expected to be available from September.
Maida also outlined other reforms, including the conclusion of the NIN-SIM audit, settlement of USSD debt issues, and the introduction of a Major Incident Reporting Portal.
He stressed that transparency and accountability remain key to positioning Nigeria’s telecom industry on a global scale.
On the recurring complaints of fast data depletion, Maida explained that independent audits of telecom billing systems found no evidence of deliberate fraud.
Instead, factors like mobile app background usage, device settings, and complex tariff plans were identified as the main causes.
Officials from the NCC’s Consumer Affairs Bureau also shared practical tips to help subscribers manage their data consumption more effectively.
The Public Affairs Directorate urged the media to raise more awareness on consumer protection initiatives.
Nigeria currently records over 172 million active telecom users, including 141 million internet users and more than 105 million broadband subscribers.
With the removal of the tax, industry experts predict greater affordability, improved digital access, and wider innovation in the telecom space.
COURTESY: iyejoy
