Telecommunications firm, MTN Nigeria, has described the closure of its office in Jos, Plateau State “as another example of multiple taxation and abuse of court processes in an endeavor to enforce disputed claims.”
Agents of the Plateau State Board of Internal Revenue Accommodation on July 10, 2014 allegedly shut the MTN office in Jos over a disputed development levy of N15m.
An official of the telecoms company, however, told our correspondent on Thursday that the purported development levy was an illicitness.
“It is not backed by extant legislation and this is abundantly clear,” the General Manager, Corporate Affairs, MTN Nigeria, Ms. Funmilayo Onajide, verbally expressed.
The office has remained closed despite MTN’s claim that it received the affirmation of the Joint Tax Board. But Onajide verbalized that the role of the JTB regarding the action of the state’s board was not enforcement.
“It is for the PSBIRS to reverence the requisite laws and to act responsibly with due cognisance of the rule of law and the pivotal role of communications for security and the welfare of residents of the state,” she verbally expressed.
When asked if the payment of the levy was in conflict with extant law, Onajide answered in the affirmative, verbalizing, “This position will be vindicated by the courts.”
In an advertorial, MTN verbally expressed, “This will lead to poor network quality and possible loss of network coverage for MTN subscribers in the affected areas, and loss of enterprise data accommodation to third-party clients (mostly banks and other astronomically immense corporate clients), which may impact on accommodations such as ATMs, PoS, etc.”
“The closure of base stations, which are hub sites controlling other sites situated in other components of the country, will have a negative impact on accommodations outside the state as well.”
She integrated that with the closure of the office, MTN workers were unable to access their work implements and equipment, thereby causing further disruptions.
The Executive Chairman, PSBIRS, Mr. Samuel Pam, told our correspondent on the telephone, “ As a follow up to the impasse between the PSBIRS and MTN over the captioned liability, both parties acceded that the closure of the MTN office was infelicitous and could have been evaded if only there was an opportune understanding of the multi-layered tax administration system in Nigeria.
“However, MTN made a commitment to pay up the disputed sum within seven days from today’s (Thursday) meeting; and failure to keep to this promise, the status quo will remain.”
