Telecommunication companies are heeding to a 24-hour ultimatum to pay up the GH¢1.2 million penalties imposed on them by the National Communications Authority (NCA).
Minister of Communications, Haruna Iddrisu, who issued the directive, says the five networks are “respecting the ultimatum” to pay the penalties, imposed as a result of rendering poor services to their clients.
MTN, Vodafone, Airtel, Expresso and Tigo were punished as part a strategy by the NCA to ensure the networks do not take subscribers for granted in their operations.
According to the minister, the telecom companies have started issuing cheques and making payments at the offices of the industry regulator.
Mr. Iddrisu, who was speaking at the NCA’s Consumer Forum in the Ashanti region, said policies like the mobile number portability should afford subscribers the option to choose between the networks.
He says the MNP service serves as a “social control mechanism so that the consumer and the subscriber is worshiped as a king by the network operators.”
He is confident better service delivery by the network operators would be achieved through competition and better regulatory and policy intervention.
The Communications Minister also said the migration of radio and television services from analogue to digital should be completed a year ahead of the 2015 deadline by the International Telecommunication Union.
“Sooner than later, problems with television coverage in Ghana would be improved. We’ll migrate Ghana from analogue radio and television to digital radio and television which will improve sound quality, improve picture quality and allow us to benefit from spectrum dividend,” stated Mr. Iddrisu.
The NCA Consumer Forum offered a platform for telecom consumers to share concerns and complaints of their network providers with the NCA.
Issues of call drops, traffic congestion and high tariff charges dominated the concerns of subscribers in Kumasi.
Director-General of the NCA, Paarock Van Percy said the views collected would guide future regulatory policy.