NCC confirms receipt of N50 billion 'good faith' payment made by telecom giant

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March 2, 2016 8:26 AM

Tony Ojobo, Public Affairs Director at the NCC, said, in a statement, that the commission received official confirmation of the transaction from the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, on Monday

Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta

Reports reveal that the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has confirmed that the Federal Government has received the N50 billion payment made by MTN Nigeria as part of the settlement for the fine imposed on it by the regulator.

In addition to that, the commission also confirmed that the South Africa-based telecom giant has withdrawn the suit it filed against the regulator.

Channels TV Online reports that Tony Ojobo, Public Affairs Director at the NCC, said, in a statement, that the commission received official confirmation of the transaction from the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, on Monday.

“The amount was an unconditional good faith payment, on the basis that this sum would be applied towards eventual settlement agreement for payment of the fine imposed by the Commission, where the ongoing negotiations between the Federal Government and the company reaches a final resolution,” Ojobo's statement read.

The statement also said that the receipt of the amount, and withdrawal of the suit by MTN Nigeria, is without prejudice to the final decision of the government on the terms of payment proposed by the company.

MTN Nigeria was fined by the NCC last year, for failing to deactivate unregistered SIMs. The matter has since taken several turns and the company's latest move means there could be yet more drama.

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