Court okays FCCPC’s probe of MTN
10 February 2025 |
5:37 am
Justice Friday Ogazi of the Federal High Court in Lagos State has affirmed that the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has statutory authority to regulate competition and consumer protection across all sectors, including telecommunications.
Telco apologises over disruption, services still wobble
Justice Friday Ogazi of the Federal High Court in Lagos State has affirmed that the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has statutory authority to regulate competition and consumer protection across all sectors, including telecommunications.
It told Emeka Nnubia, a shareholder of telecommunications company, MTN, that he (Nnubia) was “wailing more than the bereaved” for attempting to prevent FCCPC from investigating the telco.
However, while MTN apologised to its customers, especially in Lagos, its services are still at snail speed. On December 1, 2024, the FCCPC, the federal agency regulating and enforcing customers’ rights, announced that it was launching an investigation into consumer complaints against MTN and other private companies.
Nnubia was uncomfortable with that regulatory decision as a shareholder of MTN; hence, he approached the court to halt the inquiry. He argued that such an inquiry could violate the Nigeria Data Protection Act and the guidelines for disclosure to public authorities.
He also argued that the power to regulate MTN resided in the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and not FCCPC.Additionally, he said the data requested by FCCPC constituted personal data and could not be subject to disclosure.
On Friday, the judge ruled that they failed to disclose any reasonable cause of action. More importantly, the court wondered how the planned inquiry affected the plaintiff when the FCCPC neither commenced the investigation against Nnubia nor requested any of his data.
Before ruling on the substantive suit, the court upheld the FCCPC’s preliminary objections raised by Abimbola Ojenike and Oluwadamilola Omotosho of Slingstone LP, who were its lawyers, contending that the suit commenced without giving it a statutory pre-action notice and challenging the rights of the plaintiff to initiate the case in the first instance.
Nnubia, who is also a legal practitioner, represented himself in the case. Chinonso Ekuma, a legal practitioner, represented MTN as the 3rd defendant.
The court affirmed the FCCPC’s authority as the primary agency regulating companies’ anti-competitive practices and ensuring no company unfairly enjoys a dominant market position.
“The court stated that FCCPC is the primary authority responsible for regulating anti-competitive practices in Nigeria. The commission’s objectives under Sections 17 and 18 of the FCCPA include preventing the abuse of dominant position and anti-competitive practices,” said Ojenike at the weekend. “Considering that MTN is one of the largest providers of telecommunication services in the industry, it is necessary for the 2nd defendant to exercise its regulatory oversight, especially because the telecommunications industry is central to the Nigerian economy.”
According to him, Section 90 of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, purportedly vesting NCC with exclusive jurisdiction regarding competition in the telecommunication industry, must be read in consonance with the provisions of Section 104 of the FCCPA 2018, which is the later legislation.
The court also grounded its judgment in some specific provisions of the FCCPA, holding that the NCC and the FCCPC share a concurrent regulatory oversight in the telecom industry in line with practices in other jurisdictions.
MILLIONS of MTN customers, especially those in Lagos, at the weekend, experience serious service disruptions, which led to slow Internet services, undelivered SMS, and failed calls, among others.
The outage sparked widespread complaints on social media, with customers expressing frustration over the prolonged downtime. The disruption also had a ripple effect on financial transactions, as many Nigerians rely on mobile networks for banking and payments.
Many MTN users took to social media platforms at the weekend to vent their frustrations. For instance, Sir David Onyemaizu tweeted on #SirDavidBent, “MTN should stop telecommunications and turn their offices into canteens. A rubbish network.”
Another user, Anime Queen@layzeeloli, wrote: “MTN, Airtel and Glo are very lucky they’re probably the only network industry that we can afford. I wish one mind-blowing network would come out and put them out of business, maybe they’ll sit up. I need an Opay version of network providers. All these mid networks dey tire me.”
But in an SMS to subscribers at the weekend, the telecoms giant acknowledged the inconvenience caused by the outage. The message read, “Dear customer, we sincerely apologise for the challenges experienced with Internet services yesterday in parts of Lagos State. This has been resolved, and services are fully restored. Thank you for your understanding.”
Despite this, as of yesterday, SMS were still not getting delivered as they should, and Internet speed was still slow. MTN, according to NCC, is the largest operator in the country with 84 million subscribers as of December 2024 and 51.4 per cent market penetration.
Related
12 mins ago
Three persons have been reportedly shot dead, while several others were injured in a clash between two factions in Iko Esai Community
1 hour ago
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has declared four associates of Lagos drug kingpin Alhaji Suleiman Aremu Ganiu
2 hours ago
Bayero University, Kano (BUK) is spending over N100,000 to host dignitaries including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for its 39th convocation ceremony. The four-day staggered event begins on Wednesday, 12th, with the award of degrees, diplomas, and certificates, while the grand finale, fixed for Saturday, 14th February 2025, with the award of an honorary degree. Vice…
2 hours ago
The Executive Chairman of the Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service (KADIRS), Jerry Adams, has said that the service was able to collect N70 billion taxes in 2024, while targeting N112 billion for 2025. Adams said this on Monday in Kaduna at a two-day Annual Performance Review, Work Plan and Strategic Retreat 2025. He said it…
2 hours ago
An Osun Magistrates’ Court sitting in Ile-Ife on Monday, ordered the remand of a 36-year-old man, Ojo Israel, at the Ile-Ife Correctional Service, over alleged N6.2 million visa fraud. Israel, whose address was not provided, is facing a five-count charge bordering on conspiracy, intent to defraud, stealing, fraud and forgery. He, however, pleaded not guilty…
2 hours ago
The Church of England's elected governing body will begin a week-long meeting on Monday after an "unprecedented crisis" triggered by a number of sexual abuse scandals. The London meeting comes a month after Justin Welby stepped down as Archbishop of Canterbury, head of the world's Anglicans, over the scandal. Sexual abuse allegations against a priest…
2 hours ago
Nigeria Forest Security Service (NFSS), Kano State Command, says it received no fewer than 25 complaints in January. The Commander of NFSS in the state, Abdullahi Al’ameen, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano on Monday. Al’ameen said that out of the 25 complainants received, 18…
2 hours ago
The Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) Registrar, Ishaq Oloyede, has argued against the establishment of more universities in the country. While speaking as a guest on Channels Television, Oloyede said that the improvement of facilities in existing universities is a substitute for the establishment of more universities. According to him, Nigerians who make a case…
2 hours ago
Adamawa State Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri has officially flagged off the construction of the Jimeta Ultra-Modern Shopping Complex, a ₦19.7 billion project aimed at transforming the commercial landscape of Adamawa State. The governor performed the groundbreaking ceremony on Monday, reaffirming his administration's commitment to economic development, job creation, and urban modernization. Speaking at the event,…
2 hours ago
The Kano State Government has awarded N20 billion contact for the construction of two critical township roads, aimed at enhancing transportation and boosting economic activities. The Commissioner for Works and Housing, Alhaji Marwan Ahmed, disclosed this in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano on Monday. He said that the…
×
Get the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.
0 Comments
We will review and take appropriate action.