Indications emerged on Thursday that the Nigerian Communications Commission was considering action on illegal deduction of subscribers’ data by service providers.

Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, had on Wednesday ordered the commission to stop the said illegal deductions within five working days.

The NCC was also directed to reduce the cost of data within the period.

Responding to questions at a meeting with telecoms operators in Abuja on Thursday, the NCC Executive Commissioner, Stakeholders Management, Adeleke Adewolu, said the commission was looking into the matter.

“We will set up a time frame to discuss what a consumer should do when the data is deducted irregularly,” he said.

Adewolu had said the NCC would “punish” service providers who failed to attend to customers’ complaint within 24 hours.

Meanwhile the Federal Government has said that it is working to designate telecoms facilities as ‘Critical National Infrastructure.’

Ibrahim told members of the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria that an Executive Order was being prepared to confer the Critical National Infrastructure status on telecoms facilities.