By Emmanuel Elebeke

ABUJA— The Minister of Communications, Mr Abdur-Raheem Shittu, has assured that no Nigerian telecom subscriber would be shortchanged by any service provider under his watch in view of  the increasing complaints of poor quality of service and regulatory deficiencies.

This is even as the minister described the present economic downturn besetting the nation as a temporary setback, saying the telecom sector holds the ace to ending the current gloomy economy as it is set to boost the revenue base of the country and enhance job creation for the unemployed youths.

The minister in a statement issued, yesterday, by his Special Assistant on Media, Victor Oluwadamilare, declared that the telecom sector holds the ace to the litany of economic challenges confronting the nation and  urged the citizens to support the President to provide the enabling environment for the industry to thrive.

His words: “As we celebrate the New Year, I appeal to all Nigerians to continue to rally support for President Muhammadu Buhari and governors, to ensure the success of the ongoing transformation.

“The various complaints of telecom subscribers across board and the challenges besetting telecom operators in Nigeria are being looked into holistically with a view to finding lasting solutions in conjunction with relevant stakeholders within the possible shortest time.

“The Federal Ministry of Communications under my watch will ensure synergy in the communication sector, to give room for Nigerians to take full advantage of the potentials in the industry.

”The telecom sector holds a lot of promise for the economic growth of Nigeria in terms of revenue generation and massive employment generation, if all the industry’s potentials and ICT’s limitless opportunities are well harnessed.”

Shittu said since nothing could be achieved in a state of chaos and instability, he urged Nigerians to embrace peace and live in harmony irrespective of their cultural, religious and tribal differences, adding that Nigeria would only make remarkable progress as a people when the citizens are united.