The Nigerian
Communications Commission has urged the Federal High Court in Lagos to dismiss
or decline hearing the suit filed by MTN Nigeria Communications Limited to
challenge the N1.04tn fine imposed on it by the commission.
NCC had
imposed the N1.04tn fine on MTN for its failure to disconnect its unregistered
subscribers in line with the commission’s directive.
But not pleased with the sanction, the telecommunications company had approached
a Federal High Court in Lagos seeking an order quashing the fine.
MTN had
urged the court to determine whether NCC could act pursuant to Section 70 of
the NCC Act to impose a fine on it without breaching the provisions of sections
1 (3), 4 and 6 of the 1999 Constitution.
The
telecommunications company claimed that NCC violated its (MTN) fundamental
right to fair hearing, adding that by imposing the fine, NCC was already
usurping “the exclusive legislative powers of the National Assembly, as well as
the judicial powers of the courts established under the constitution.”
But in a
motion on notice filed through its lawyers, Ahmed Raji (SAN), and Mahmud Magaji
(SAN), NCC asked the court to dismiss the suit for want of jurisdiction or send
it to Abuja.
The commission
argued that the suit was wrongly filed in Lagos, noting that the subject of the
dispute took place in Abuja, while the two respondents in the suit, NCC and the
Attorney General of the Federation, were also based in Abuja.
NCC urged
the court to void the service of court processes on it, arguing that the
commission failed to comply with Section 143 of the NCC Act in serving the
processes.
MTN in its
suit, which has yet to be heard, is contending that it was not afforded enough
time to comply with the NCC directive, adding that the commission did not also
give it fair hearing before hurriedly announcing the sanction.
It also
contended that the sanction of N.2m per SIM was excessive, noting that it was
the highest fine ever imposed on any telecommunications company in the world.
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