The Association of Licensed Telecom Operators in Nigeria (ALTON) has warned the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) to desist from its planned nationwide protest on February 4.
The Telcom operators urged the Congress not to drive in the last nail in the coffin of an already ailing telecom sector.
Speaking via its Chief Executive Officers and the Chairman of the umbrella body, Gbenga Adebayo at a town hall meeting in Victoria Island on Saturday evening, ALTON stated that it had no doubt that the Labour union would not want to be addressed as the undertaker of a dead sector.
He expressed hope that NLC would listen to the voice of reason and suspend the protest.
He said: “The coming week will be crucial, but I trust that ongoing discussions at various levels will prevent an outcome we do not expect or desire.
“While I cannot say everything, I am aware that efforts are being made to ensure stability.
“That said, I sincerely hope no group will push the telecom sector to collapse.
“I hope Labour does not become the undertaker of the industry. If that happens, the consequences are clear; we will start heading downward. And once we do, recovery may become impossible.
“We initially made our request to the government based on thorough studies and reports.
“In fact, data suggests our sector requires far more than the 100% increase we originally requested. Despite this, we still accepted Federal governments 50%, hoping that in due time, following market demand, more would be approved.
“Let me illustrate this with a simple analogy: Remember COVID-19? When patients needed oxygen, they were given full tanks to survive.
“Now, imagine the telecom sector as a patient requiring 100 liters of oxygen. The government initially suggested 50 liters — just enough to sustain life and reassess later. But now, there is talk of reducing it further to just 10 liters.
“If a person who needs 100 liters is only given 10, we all know the inevitable outcome.
“The proposed 50 liters is already a lifeline, allowing us to survive, recover, and contribute to employment and economic growth.
“Anything lower would be catastrophic — like a critically ill patient being denied the oxygen necessary to live beyond the next day.”
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