9Mobile: What More should we Expect as 100 Engineers Lose Their Jobs?

It is stale news that former Etisalat NG is now 9Mobile. The new name was officially revealed on Wednesday, 19 July, but what is still uncertain is the fate of the subscribers, and more importantly its employees.

Recall that trouble started when Etisalat NG defaulted in the payment of a $1.2 billion debts they owed a number of banks, banks which included many Nigerian banks and some foreign ones.

There are a number of opinions have risen for the possible reason for the demise of the telecommunications firm and its need to rebrand. These include high salary it paid its workers, the recession of the country some experts have pinned it down to simple mismanagement of funds.

Whichever, the hen is beginning to come to roost.  Huawei Technologies, one of the key partners of Etisalat Nigeria, now 9Mobile,  was reported to have relieved some workers of their duties. Some without due process or any severance packages. Some even alleged to have been with the company for a good number of years without the benefit of promotion or some other forms of emolument.

According to the report, the chairman of the Private Telecommunications and Communications Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PTECSSAN), Comrade Kolelade Owa who spoke on behalf of the agitated workers, made clear the fact that the sacked workers be reinstated and if need be, the process must be done the right way.

Although the Nigerian Communications Commissions (NCC) had promised that it would ensure that stakeholders the (subscribers or workers) are protected from the aftermath of the development, this laying off may be the first of some developments to come. With the data-ache the subscribers are yet to grapple with, the big question is how much more do we have to contend with?

9Mobile inherited about 20 Million subscribers n from Etisalat Nigeria. That translates to14% of the total number of subscribers in Nigeria and coming fourth in the ladder. (MTN has the lion share with 47%, Globacom 20%, and Airtel,  19%). How much trust should these users trust 9mobile? Can they hold on for so long?