The Federal Government has asked the Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST) to suspend its recent hike in licensing fees for operators of courier services in the country.
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami ordered the suspension at the weekend.
The NIPOST had recently announced hike in tariff on registration of courier services in the country.
The hike had met with resistances and backlashes from operators and stakeholders who said the development would further worsen the bad situation in the sector.
However, reacting to complaints by Nigerians on the new hike, Dr Pantami, said the government did not approve the hike.
A statement by the minister’s media aide, Uwa Suleiman maintained that the increase was not part of the regulation earlier approved by the minister for NIPOST.
“Our attention has been drawn to an increase of licence fees, which was not part of the regulation I earlier approved for you,” said Dr Pantami.
“The Chairman of NIPOST and the Post Master General were contacted yesterday to put the implementation on hold and send a report to our Ministry by Monday”, he added.
The Minister further clarified that “the power of regulation of NIPOST lies with the Minister, any change of fees must be approved by him. I know the economic challenges of NIPOST. However, looking at the economic hardship of our citizens, we need to suspend any move.
“This directive comes amidst ongoing efforts by the Honourable Minister to reposition the Postal Services sector for optimal efficiency, in line with global best practices and as enshrined in the Universal Postal Union (UPU) global resolution of September 2019.”