The board of telecommunications giant- MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, on Friday, hinted the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) of its pending “technical disagreement” with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) on whether it ought to pay corporate tax on a N330bn (about $1.1bn) fine.
The matter, according to a statement by Uto Ukpanah, its company secretary, is now before a Tax Tribunal for adjudication. The tribunal, the brainchild of FIRS Chairman, Babatunde Fowler, and former Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, is to determine whether MTNN ought to pay taxes on the 2015 fine imposed by the National Communications Commission (NCC). Notwithstanding the disagreement, MTNN said, “the monies (disputed tax) have been paid to FIRS. Reuters, however, quoted MTN Nigeria’s spokesman as saying however that government cannot access the money, given that the case is “with the tax tribunal the government can’t access the money. “We believe that the fine should be treated as part of the cost of running the business but the FIRS thinks otherwise,” he stressed. MTNN, in the statement to the NSE, assured of its readiness to abide by the decision of the tribunal, assuring of the company’s readiness to continue complying with the Nigerian tax laws, as well as meeting its fiscal responsibilities and contributing to the social and economic development of the country. MTNN recalled that since incorporation in 2001, it has invested over N2tr into the nation’s economy, besides paying over “N1.7tr in taxes, levies, and other regulatory fees.” Recall that the company was originally fined N1.04tr for failing to deactivate more than five million unregistered SIM cards, but this was negotiated downward, clearing its path to list on the Nigerian Stock Exchange earlier this year. The MTN spokesman said the group was waiting for the tribunal’s decision, as it could set a precedent for how penalties are treated by companies registered in Nigeria.
Source: invest data
