N1.04trn Fine: Nigerian Lawyers Challenge NCC in Court

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Two lawyers, who are subscribers to MTN, have filed a legal suit against the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) as first respondent and MTN Nigeria as second respondent, over the N1.04 trillion fine imposed on MTN by NCC on SIM card deactivation.

The lawyers, Mr. Oluyinka Oyeniji and Chief Deolu Ogunbanjo, both incorporated trustees of National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOM), have challenged NCC at the Federal High Court, sitting in Lagos, praying the court to stop NCC from further imposing fine on MTN. They also want the court to compel NCC to account for all the monies it collected from telecoms operators in the past as fines, and to pay such monies to subscribers as compensation for poor service quality they had suffered from in the past.

According to the court document, both lawyers, who are applicants one and two respectively in the court case, are calling for an order of perpetual injunction, restraining the first respondent (NCC) from further imposing or exerting any fine in respect of registration of telephone subscribers on the second respondent (MTN).

They called for an order, mandating the first respondent to commission, establish and conduct monthly updates on the central database and to conduct rigorous campaign for applicants and other telephone subscribers to update their particulars with the respondents.

They equally called for an order, mandating the respondents to publish newspaper apologies to the applicants and other telephone subscribers for the lack of establishment, maintenance and conducting updates on the central database.

In a sworn affidavit, the lawyers mandated NCC to account for all the fines it had imposed on telecoms operators and pay applicants as well as other telephone subscribers as compensation, and to continue to pay fines exerted and imposed upon conviction as compensation to applicants and other telephone subscribers.

Source: ThisDay