FG rejects telecom giants out of court settlement

folarin okunola

January 26, 2016 2:22 PM

MTN had issued a statement on Friday, saying that it would now settle the case with the NCC out of court, per a request it had put before the court.

Travellers walk past an MTN telecom shop at King Shaka International Airport in Durban, South Africa, November 16, 2015. REUTERS/Rogan Ward

According to media reports, the Federal Government has refused the out of court settlement offer by South Africa-based telecoms giant, MTN Nigeria, over the court case on the $3.4 billion fine imposed on it in December, 2015.

MTN had issued a statement on Friday, saying that it would now settle the case with the NCC out of court, per a request it had put before the court.

However, Minister of Communications, Barrister Adebayo Shittu, on Tuesday, in Abuja, said the Federal Government was not aware of any out of court settlement regarding the fine.

READ: Telecom giants gets two-month ultimatum to settle with NCC over $3.9 billion fine

“We are not aware of any out of court settlement on the issue. We will not accept out of court settlement until MTN willingly discontinue the case,” Adebayo said at a press conference where he unveiled the new ICT road map for 2016-2020.

According to Daily Trust, the Minster said MTN wanted to buy time by taking the federal government to court, insisting that the government was intent on slugging it out with the company.

MTN Nigeria was fined $5.2 billion by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in October for regulatory infractions, but later reduced to $3.4 billion before MTN went to court to challenge the fine.

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folarin okunola