Ijeoma Agudosi
The Senate has asked its Joint Committee on Information, Trade and Investment to commence the probe of the foreign firms operating in the country.
The action was prompted by the seeming impunity surrounding the operations of Multi-choice Nigeria, a subsidiary of South African-based Multichoice Africa, owners of DSTV.
The Senate equally summoned the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment; National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) and Consumer Protection Council (CPC) to explain why the firm has such latitude to act with such a degree of non-challance.
The committees were also asked to unravel the rationale behind DSTV’s unchallenged dominance in the Nigerian satellite television market which they believed was the underlying factor behind its sharp and unhealthy practices in the country.
The move was spurred by a motion by Senator Isa Misau (Bauchi Central)
To enable the Senate get to the root of the matter, it also directed the joint committee to organise a public hearing involving stakeholders and civil society organisations with a view to ensuring that the menace of Multi-choice is brought to an end.