Nigieria’s Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami has ordered the Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST) to suspend its new tariff on registration of courier services in the country.

Spokesperson of the Minister, Uwa Suleiman announced this in a press statement on Saturday, July 25, 2020.

She said the Minister gave the order in reaction to the complaints of Nigerians on the increment on the license fees.

Dr Pantami, whose Ministry oversees NIPOST, disclosed on his verified Twitter handle that “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 stated 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”.

“The directive comes amidst ongoing efforts by the Honourable Minster 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”.   

The announcement of the increase in tariff by NIPOST drew the ire of not a few Nigerians who based the President Muhammadu Buhari led Federal Government for being insensitive to the plight of Nigerians, especially, in the wake of the economic downturn occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic.