HEADLINENEWS.NEWS correspondent reports that the fear of imminent blackout of telecommunication services in some parts of the country looms large again as some state governments have sealed or threatened to close down Base Station Transmission (BTS) sites over unpaid taxes allegedly being owed by telecoms operators.
Telecoms operators over the past few years have unsuccessfully persuaded state governments from imposing extra taxes and levies on their operations because they increase the cost of doing business, can indirectly impact on quality of service and may trigger a rise in the cost of voice and data services for subscribers.
The Oyo State government a few weeks ago, also announced that it had sealed some telecom masts and the premises of some commercial banks in Ibadan, the state capital, over non-payment of taxes.
The Osun State government recently contracted a private consulting firm to conduct a telecoms infrastructure installation audit, an exercise which is expected to generate N500m revenue for the state government.
Worried by these developments, the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to urgently intervene, stating that indiscriminate shutting down of telco facilities could disrupt services and adversely impact quality of service.