Key Takeaways
- A House of Representatives committee moved to compel telecom chief executives to appear before lawmakers over persistent subscriber complaints about poor network services.
- Lawmakers rejected ALTON chairman Gbenga Adebayo as the operators’ representative after the chief executives failed to honour an October 21 invitation.
- The committee directed executives from MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria, Globacom, Mafab Communications and other licensed operators to appear before it on November 4, 2026.
The House of Representatives has moved to compel Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of various telecommunication companies to appear before it over persistent complaints about poor network services after the operators failed to honour an earlier invitation.
Naija News reports that the lawmakers took the decision on Wednesday after rejecting the Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Gbenga Adebayo, whom the companies sent to represent them.
The House ad hoc committee investigating the quality of telecom services, chaired by Olumide Osoba, directed the chief executives and other top officials of the companies to appear before it on November 4, 2026.
The affected operators include MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria, Globacom, Mafab Communications and other licensed companies.
The committee had invited the executives on October 21 to explain the repeated complaints from subscribers about poor network services. However, the companies sent Adebayo instead of appearing through their chief executives.
The move did not go down well with the lawmakers, who insisted that each company must answer questions about its operations.
Moving a motion on the matter, Rep. Sunday Umeha said each telecom operator held a separate licence from the Federal Government and should not use its membership of an industry association to avoid appearing before the committee.
He also faulted a letter from ALTON which, according to him, questioned the committee’s authority to invite the operators.
“I was shocked with what I saw in the letter. I saw a situation where ALTON is saying that they are not bound to appear before this committee. They see their appearance as a privilege to this committee and not as a statutory obligation,” Umeha said.
The lawmaker cited Section 88 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, arguing that the National Assembly had the power to investigate matters within its legislative duties, including the implementation of government policies affecting telecommunications.
He said the committee could insist that the companies appear individually rather than accept a representative sent through their association.
A representative of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) told the committee that the commission had communicated the invitations directly to the chief executives.
Umeha said the lawmakers had considered ordering the arrest of the executives at their previous sitting but decided to give them another opportunity to appear.
He argued that the companies had failed to take advantage of that opportunity despite further communication through the NCC.
