NATCOMS President Deolu Ogunbanjo, who disclosed this to Daily Trust yesterday, also said the group would write to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) next week informing it of the impending action of customers against MTN.
According to Ogunbanjo, it is bad that MTN has not done anything in the last three weeks to bring down the retail prices of its cards.
He said though he has spoken with some senior managers on the matter and they have promised to look into it before month end, his group would go ahead if the company fails to address the issue.
The telecoms consumer rights activist also told Daily Trust that NATCOMS was carrying out some investigations to verify MTN’s claim that it did not authorize the increase.
He said by the time the investigation is concluded next week, an SMS would be sent to all MTN customers on what to do about the issue.
Recharge cards vendors have been adding N10 or N20 to the price of each MTN recharge card denomination in the last three weeks, a development dealers blamed on MTN who, they said, had increased the prices at which it used to sell the cards to them.
MTN had denied increasing the retail prices of its recharge cards, saying any variance from the authorized face value of recharge cards is without MTN’s knowledge or authority.
MTN’s Corporate Services Executive Wale Goodluck said: “We have not effected a price increase and the retail prices of the various denominations of our recharge cards and recharge vouchers remain the same.
The recharge vouchers come in the following denominations: N1, 500, N750, N400, N200 and N100.” But MTN dealers had told Daily Trust that the telecoms operator was economical with the truth by saying it didn’t authorize increase in the prices of its airtime.
The dealers’ spokesman told Daily Trust on phone that MTN met with them last year where a decision to increase the prices of its recharge cards was made.
The spokesman, who pleaded anonymity, said MTN had told them that from January they would no longer get the cards at prices it used to sell to them.
He said: “Before, N100 denomination used to be sold to us at N90, then we in turn sell at N93 or N94 to sub-dealers and they sell at N97 or N98. And that is why it was sold by the vendors at N100 then. Additions were made by MTN on the other cards, depending on the denomination. “But now, MTN sells to us at N95, we sell at N96 or N97 sub dealers sell at N98 or N99. And this is why vendors are forced to sell at N110 in some places.”
