By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan
The Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Telecommunications, Hon. Saheed Akinade- Fijabi on Wednesday said the House will amend the Nigerian Communications Commission’s (NCC) Act.
Hon Fijabi who dropped this hint in Ibadan while featuring at the South-West Group of Online Publishers (SWEGOP) media chart declared that the move was to put a stop to the menace of unsolicited messages among the subscribers of the telecommunication companies operating in the country.
According to Honourable Fijabi,“there are a lot of amendments in the NCC Act but the major one is on the unsolicited messages”.
The Chairman House Committee on Telecommunications noted that presently,the NCC amendment Act has passed through the second reading and that
the amendment of the Act “will serve as a legal back up in order to sanction any erring companies”.
“I am facing the kind of what you face, I buy recharge cards just like you, it is affecting us also, but I want to assure you that we are working to stop unsolicited messages, there are a lot of amendments on the NCC Act especially on the unsolicited messages, the amendment has passed through the second reading”he said.
Honourable Fijabi added that “the major amendment on the NCC Act is that of the unsolicited messages, after it has been passed and the President gives his assent, it will serve as sanction to defaulter”.
“You see recently NCC fined MTN, that is part of what we have been doing. When passed, and the President assents, then we can sanction the defaulter”.
Speaking on his activities at the National Assembly, Honourable Fijabi said he has sponsored several motions and bills “which has had positive impact on the people”saying,“as
a lawmaker, I have moved several motions and supported many bills, these includes the one on Cervical Cancer, but the work of legislature is a process”.
“Some people might not be performing in the plenary, you may not see them on the TV or hear them on the Radio, but they may be performing at the committee level. If you see a member that does not appear on the TV that does not mean he does not work, because we have 360 members and about 200 at a time and we have limited time, so it is not possible for everybody to talk”.
He added ” I have facilitated projects worth N300 million to School, Ring Road Hospital is being rehabilitated, I have facilitated many projects to UCH even it is outside my constituency.
