The chief executives of MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria and Globacom have until Wednesday, 28 October, to appear in person before a House of Representatives committee investigating poor network quality, or risk arrest warrants. The order, issued on 21 October, also covers Mafab Communications and other operators, Nairametrics and Techpoint Africa reported.
The House Ad hoc Committee on poor service quality and customer experience, chaired by Olumide Osoba (APC, Ogun), says the CEOs ignored earlier invitations and sent junior staff instead. It has told the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to make sure they turn up, and directed operators to submit all relevant documents on or before the hearing date.
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"It is unacceptable for companies operating in the country to disregard parliamentary invitations," said Ibe Osonwa (LP, Arochukwu/Ohafia), as quoted by Nairametrics.
Why lawmakers have run out of patience
Osoba told the House that telecom services "had consistently declined in recent times", and two members, Sunday Umeha (APC, Enugu) and Afam Ogene (NDC, Anambra), moved the motions that led to the summons. Complaints back them up. Figures cited by Techpoint show 413,587 consumer complaints in the first half of 2026:
| Operator | Complaints, first half of 2026 |
|---|---|
| Airtel | 228,992 |
| MTN | 124,405 |
| Glo | 56,810 |
What the complaint numbers show
Airtel alone accounts for about 55% of the 413,587 complaints, MTN for about 30% and Glo for about 14%. Raw complaint totals do not account for how many subscribers each network has, so they are not a ranking of network quality. They do show where the volume of unhappy customers sits.
The hearing was set for 2pm in Hearing Room 447 of the New Building at the National Assembly Complex, Abuja, according to reports including Vanguard and TheCable.
The operators' side of the story
Operators point to damage they do not control. NCC records cited by Techpoint show 44,678 fibre cuts between January and September 2026, including 17,462 from cable degradation and 9,283 from vandalism. Operators also logged 23,954 cases of being denied access to their own sites, 17,482 of them linked to insecurity, and 3,732 cases of equipment theft.
They are spending, too. Operators and tower companies invested about ₦2.5 trillion in networks in 2025, adding or upgrading more than 2,800 sites, according to Nairametrics. Since April, the NCC has also required automatic airtime compensation for poor service, which operators say has reached more than 75 million subscribers.
Why this hearing is different
Lawmakers have questioned telcos before, but two things raise the stakes this time. First, the committee has named the chief executives personally and threatened arrest warrants, after earlier invitations were met by junior staff. Second, the NCC now has a compensation framework in place, so operators will be asked not only why service is poor but also whether affected subscribers are being credited as the rules require.
What this means for you
A hearing will not fix a dropped call this week. What it can do is put the operators' explanations, and their plans, on the public record. Two things are worth knowing now:
- If your calls or data keep failing, log a complaint with your network first and write down the reference number. Note the dates, times and places the problem happens, since that detail helps your case.
- If the network does not resolve it, escalate to the NCC on its toll-free line 622 and quote your reference number.
- Check whether your area qualifies for poor-service compensation on the NCC's list of eligible local government areas. Our guide above explains how the credits work.
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Will the CEOs show up?
That is the real test of the hearing on Wednesday, 28 October. If they appear, expect questions on fibre cuts, site access and the compensation scheme. If they stay away again, the committee has said it could move to arrest warrants.
The hearing puts the operators' reasons and their repair plans on the record for the first time this year.
Sources: Nairametrics; Techpoint Africa; NCC data as reported by Techpoint.
