By Correspondent in Lokoja.
The management of the Kogi State Internal Service (KGIRS) have cause the return of Glo Mobile and Airtel telecom service providers on line in Kogi state, two weeks after the state government sealed off their Lokoja offices over alleged N360 million tax liabilities.
The Acting Executive Chairman KGIRS, Alhaji Sule Salihu-Enche, made the disclosure in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lokoja on Thursday.
The Reporters recalls that KGSIRS had, on March 22, sealed off the Lokoja office of Glo Mobile and that of Airtel over alleged tax liabilities of N300m and N60m respectively.
“Today, I wish to officially inform you that KGSIRS has unsealed the offices of Glo Mobile and Airtel after the duo made some commitments to us.
“The commitments made are in payment plans toward unbundling or defraying their respective tax liabilities of N360 million to us.
“In fact, Airtel has made some payments out of its N60 million tax liability already, which explains why their line came on stream on April 5, a day before that of Glo.
“As a service (KGSIRS), we are satisfied with their commitments or payment plans, which informed our unsealing of their offices, closed down on March 22.
“It’s our hope that they will keep to their payment plans to help cement our working relationships, for the economic growth and development of not just Kogi but Nigeria as a whole, ” the chairman stated.
The KGSIRS boss, who spoke through the Service’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Mr Murtar Mohammed, described the rift between the service and the two telecom service providers as “very unfortunate.”
Salihu-Enche expressed the hope that such a hitch or hiccup would not repeat itself in the service’s relationship with any firm doing business in Kogi in future.
Some subscribers of the two telecom organisations, who spoke with The Reporters on the return of the two companies as a big relief to their social and economic activities.
“For the two weeks that Glo and Airtel were off the line, my sale suffered monumental losses as I could not sale to Glo and Airtel credits to buyers, it was really an unfortunate development,” Mr Mathew Moses, who sells Glo and Airtel recharge cards told The Reporters.
He commended the party for the show on of understanding among other positive development that led to the return of the two telecom companies.
Mall. Mohammed Awalu, a member of the public,who also expressed delight over the development,called on the parties, involved in the face-off, to see what happened as an eye opener on the need to avoid areas that could bring conflict.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.
