South African Network Service Providers Have 14 Days to Respond to #DataMustFall Demands
South African advocacy organization Right2Know held protests outside the headquarters of network providers Telkom, Vodacom, Cell C and MTN yesterday.
South African advocacy organizationRight2Know held protests outside the headquarters of network providers Telkom, Vodacom, Cell C and MTN yesterday.
The organization was demanding a decrease to data prices in the country, which are relatively higher than most of other countries in the continent.
They gave the service providers 14 days to respond to demands including free SMSes, data that doesn't expire and affordable data and airtime.
On Tuesday morning, @r2kcampaign took its #DataMustFall campaign against exorbitant data charges to @MTNza and @Vodacom. pic.twitter.com/VS2TpEd5Zp
— Mail & Guardian (@mailandguardian) 19 September 2017
EWN reports that the South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) supports Right2Know’s demonstration as all South Africans should have the right to affordable means of communication.
“It’s a source of learning, of knowledge, of talking to each other and it’s become a part of life and it’s wrong that it is exploited by private companies simply to make huge profits,” the union’s Patrick Craven was quoted as saying by EWN.
As usual, South Africans weighed in on the issue on Twitter, not without a touch of humor.
Im all for #DataMustFall but eish what if MTN takes away free Twitter pic.twitter.com/ODIZL23stf
— Wins And Losses (@menziwa_ralph) 19 September 2017
I miss those days when R5 airtime was enough to chat all night on mxit.#DataMustFall
— • - tHa_BANG!!! - • (@thabangtselane) 19 September 2017
#DataMustFall so that people will afford video calls to avoid being catfished. pic.twitter.com/dgCCD2TfhJ
— Simphiwe Sbu Duma🇿🇦 (@SSbudaDuma) 19 September 2017
The king has arrived
Today there must be a change
1GB must be R30 on all social networks
— Problem😭😂 (@JustProblem_) 19 September 2017
#DataMustFall This transition to digital era will forever be slow in a country where data is more expensive than basic foods.
— TweetGuru (@JustKholii_) 19 September 2017