The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, has issued a stern warning to state governments, cautioning them against the practice of arbitrarily shutting down telecommunications sites due to revenue disputes or local disagreements. Ribadu emphasized that such actions pose a serious threat to Nigeria’s digital future and undermine national economic growth targets.
Speaking on Wednesday at a Business Roundtable focused on improving investments in broadband connectivity and safeguarding critical national infrastructure, the NSA, represented by Enebong Effiom, pointed out that arbitrary site closures, multiple taxation, and inconsistent right-of-way charges are major obstacles to achieving the country’s broadband expansion goals.
Ribadu explained that states, often through their internal security architecture, attempt to generate revenue by consulting internal figures and subsequently closing down operational telecom sites. “We hope that at the end of this engagement, such actions will stop, because these state security structures do not understand the implications,” he stated. He added that such actions, while intended to help state bosses, actually end up limiting the state’s potential and constraining the economic development of the entire country.
The NSA stressed that broadband facilities must be treated not as ordinary business ventures, but as critical national assets. He highlighted that Nigeria’s current broadband penetration stands at approximately 40 percent, which is significantly below the 70 percent target set by the National Broadband Plan 2020–2025. The warning comes after the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) renewed calls earlier this year for the harmonization of taxes and levies in the telecommunications sector to ease the fiscal burden on the industry.
