On the 11th of October, 2023, Prof. Umar Danbatta took a bow from office as Aminu Maida was appointed by President Ahmed Tinubu as the executive vice chairman
To stakeholders, Prof. Danbatta has done well in boosting the ICT sector, especially in the area of its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product of Nigeria.
Maida‘s appointment to the NCC is notable as he comes from outside the Nigerian telecom industry, bringing a fresh perspective and extensive experience in telecom operations, stakeholders averred. „I appeal to Maida to set up a committee that will meet with FIRS and examine some of these taxes because it is killing the industry. It is seriously affecting FDI into the country. He should work with FIRS to ensure that the multiple taxation issue is addressed,“ the national president, NATCOMS appealed.
Adebayo, however, advocated the need for the sector to collaborate with the presidential committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms to address the perennial incidence of multiple taxation in the Nigerian telecommunications sector, including the elimination of the currently suspended excise duty on telecommunications services.Adebayo averred that telecommunications serves as an ‚enabler‘ for all other critical infrastructure and infrastructure sectors vital to national productivity and security.
“The new NCC boss should also rekindle the quest for a Critical National Infrastructure Bill, a bill that will tackle the issue of vandalism of base stations, which is very rampant,” Ogunbanjo advocated.On Right of Way , Ogunbanjo has appealed to Maida to invest in states like Anambra that has waived RoW charges while continuing the conversations with other states to follow suit.
“The Commission should also incentivize investment in spectrum by providing additional value in the form of rebates on regulatory fees and other payables, especially where such frequencies are needed for backhaul purposes as an alternative to fiber. This will reduce the capital expenses of such operators and enable a faster rollout of services on such spectrum.