The House of Representatives on Wednesday beckoned on the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to dialogue with the Multichoice Group over the recent increment in DSTV and GOTV subscription packages.
This call was made following a debate on a motion moved by Umar Ajilo (Makarfi/Kudan federal constituency, Kaduna State) who called for the suspension of the tariff hike.
Moving the motion, the lawmaker said Nigerians are experiencing economic hardship; therefore, the timing of the hike is wrong.
“The prevailing economic hardship resulting from political and economic factors has made life unbearable to the common man, with far-reaching effects that are yet to be addressed,” he said.
He expressed worries at the “exorbitant increase in DSTV/GOTV package tariffs from N24,500 to N29,500 and N16,600 to N19,800 for the Premium and Compact Plus packages, respectively, at this challenging period.”
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The lawmaker however worried that the exorbitant increase would further exacerbate the sufferings of Nigerians, given the increasing pressure on household budgets, the rising cost of basic living essentials, income stagnation, and other factors.
Moreso, the prayers of the motion were amended by Jonathan Gaza (Karu/Keffi/Kokona, Nasarawa State), who stated that the government via the NBC, should dialogue with Multichoice instead of compelling the organisation.
Gaza’s amendment was embraced by the House when it was put to vote by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas.
Speaking in support of dialogue, the Speaker said since Nigeria is a “free-market society,” it would be wrong to compel a private company to reduce prices.
The motion was subsequently adopted by the House and referred to the Committee on Information to ensure compliance.
