MTN hires former US Attorney General to challenge NCC fine

By Nuel Nonny | 4th February 2016

MTN Group has hired former Attorney General of the United States,Eric Holder, to challenge the $3.9 billion fine imposed on the telecoms company by the Nigeria Communication Commission (NCC), according to a report by the Financial Times.

In its report, Eric Holder is alleged to have been in Abuja last month where he had met and pleaded with Nigerian government officials on behalf of MTN although the meeting did not yield any positive result.

Eric Holder was the US attorney general from 2009 to 2015, making him one of the longest serving official on Barack Obama’s cabinet. Holder, however, returned to private practice last year at Covington & Burling, where he was a partner from 2001 to 2009.

MTN was last year slammed with a $5.2 billion fine in October, but the fine was reduced following weeks of lobbying and negotiation by the telecommunication company, leading to a 25% percent slash of the fine.

MTN Nigeria however approached a Lagos High Court in December 2015, praying the court to quash the fine. The Judge after hearing both parties, gave them two months to settle out of court.

MTN group is yet to issue a statement on whether the hiring of Holder for the Nigerian case.

It is one month and two weeks before the date the court gave for the case to be settled.