Court Strikes out MTN’s N3bn Suit against FG

A Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday struck out the N3 billion fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by the telecommunications giant, MTN Nigeria, against the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN).

Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke struck out the suit after the court was informed about the decision of the AGF to withdraw a letter to the company demanding $2 billion alleged unremitted tax.

In September 2018, Malami had demanded that the telco pay $2 billion in tax arrears.

The arrears requested cover import duties, VAT and withholding taxes on foreign imports/payments.

The AGF had said his office made a “high-level calculation” that MTN should have paid approximately $2 billion in taxes relating to the importation of foreign equipment and payments to foreign suppliers since 2008.

MTN instituted the suit by a writ on September 10, 2018, challenging mainly, the legality of the AGF’s assessment of its import duties, withholding tax and value-added tax in the sums of N242 billion and $1.3 billion.

The plaintiff sought among other declaratory reliefs, a declaration that the AGF’s demand of the sums of N242 billion and 1.3 billion dollars from MTN, is premised on a process which is malicious, unreasonable and made on incorrect legal basis.

Its counsel, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), had argued that in writing the demand letter to MTN, Malami acted beyond his powers and violated the provisions of Section 36 of the Constitution on fair hearing with “the purported revenue assets investigation” he carried out on the firm’s activities covering 2007 to 2017.

He then prayed the court to award N3billion against the AGF for rights infringement.

But following an amicable settlement of the dispute, the AGF had via a letter dated January 8, 2020 announced his withdrawal from the case.

This made MTN to promise to withdraw the suit from the court at the next adjourned date.

When the case resumed yesterday, counsel to the AGF, Habibat Ajana, drew the judge’s attention to a January 8, 2020, letter by the AGF to MTN, in which the former said he had reviewed the issue and had decided to withdraw the demand letter.

Responding, Olanipekun said with the withdrawal letter from the AGF, his client would drop its suit.

Consequently, the judge struck out the suit.