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- President Bola Tinubu announced the cancellation of the planned 5% excise duty on telecom services.
- The announcement brought relief to 172 million active subscribers.
- Context:
- Subscribers had already been grappling with:
- Poor service quality.
- Data depletion.
- Dropped calls.
- Failed top-ups.
- A recently approved 50% tariff hike, which had boosted operator revenues.
- The excise duty had been introduced under the 2020 Finance Act to boost government revenue.
- However, it faced opposition from stakeholders and the public, who argued it would:
- Increase the cost of calls and data.
- Place additional burdens on subscribers.
- President Tinubu first suspended the tax in July 2023 through an executive order.
- Now, he has abolished it entirely under new tax laws.
- NCC’s Executive Vice Chairman, Dr. Aminu Maida, confirmed:
- “The excise duty … is no longer there. Before it was suspended, but now the president has been magnanimous to remove it entirely.”
- Reactions:
- Chief Deolu Ogunbanjo (NATCOMs President):
- Welcomed the move as “soothing relief” for subscribers.
- Noted NATCOMs still has a pending court case, which may now be withdrawn.
- Warned that without Tinubu’s move, operators would have raised tariffs further.
- Gbenga Adebayo (ALTON Chairman):
- Welcomed the removal but said the industry awaits clarity.
- Raised concern it should not mean a 5% tax is replaced with a 7% levy elsewhere.
- Tinubu’s broader tax reforms, signed into law June 26, 2025:
- To be implemented from January 2026.
- Aim to consolidate multiple levies, abolish minor taxes, and raise thresholds to ease burdens on small businesses.
- Industry analysts:
- See this as proof of Tinubu’s pledge to prioritise consumer welfare.
- Expected to ease price pressures, attract investment, and grow the digital economy.
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