The MTN Group has hired a former top
United States law enforcement official to help challenge the N1.04tn
fine imposed by the Nigerian Communications Commission for failing to
disconnect unregistered subscribers, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.
Citing people familiar with the situation, the newspaper said former US Attorney General, Eric Holder, pleaded with Nigerian officials last month on behalf of the telecoms company.
Africa’s largest mobile phone company
was handed a N1.04tn ($5.2bn) penalty in October last year, prompting
weeks of lobbying that led to a 25 per cent reduction to N674bn
($3.9bn).
MTN, however, was still not
prepared to pay the fine and launched a court challenge in December,
saying the regulator had no legal grounds to order the penalty.
A judge in Lagos last month gave MTN
until March 18 to try to reach a settlement over the fine, which equates
to more than twice the company’s annual average capital spending over
the past five years.
MTN Group spokesman, Chris Maroleng, was not immediately available to comment.
Holder, who led the US Justice
Department from 2009 to 2015 and was one of President Barack Obama’s
longest-serving cabinet members, returned to the law firm, Covington
& Burling, where he was previously a partner from 2001 to 2009.
Akinpelu Dada with agency report
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