New Telegraph

FG adamant on implementation of 5% hike in calls/data tariff

The Federal Government vowed on Thursday to press ahead with the planned implementation of a five percent hike in call and data tariff.

A statement from the Federal Ministry of Finance Budget and National Planning said the tariff hike will go on schedule.

The statement by the finance ministry is at variance to tariff hike resistance by the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Pantami.

According to the statement, the government will begin “the implementation of five percent excise duty tax on all voice calls, SMS and data services, in addition to the existing 7.5 percent Value Added Tax (VAT), paid for goods and services across all sectors of the economy”.

Minister of Finance Budget and National Planning Mrs Zainab Ahmed was said to have made the disclosure at a stakeholders’ meeting, organised by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the telecoms industry regulator.

She said the government was set to implement the new tariff hike of five percent on calls and data.

At that meeting, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, who was represented by the Assistant Director, Tax Policy, Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Musa Umar, said: “Henceforth, the five percent excise duty will be collected by telecom operators and payment made to the Federal Government on a monthly basis, on or before 21st of every month.”

Reacting to Prof. Isa Ali Pantami’s resolve to resist the tariff hike, Zainab Ahmed noted that “the five percent excise duty has been in the Finance Act 2020, but has never been implemented”.

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