MTN Nigeria said on Wednesday it will shut all stores and service centres in the country until further notice after its facilities in three cities were attacked.

Leakers.ng reports that facilities were attacked in retaliation after days of riots in South Africa chiefly targeting foreign-owned, including Nigerian, businesses.

“The safety and security of our customers, staff and partners is our primary concern,” MTN Nigeria said in a statement.

“MTN condemns any acts of violence, prejudice and xenophobia.”

The latest wave of unrest in South Africa has raised fears of a recurrence of violence in 2015 aimed at foreigners and in which at least seven people were killed. Before that, some 60 people were killed in a wave of unrest around the country in 2008.

President Muhammadu Buhari said on Tuesday he was urgently sending a special envoy to meet with President Cyril Ramaphosa to secure the “safety of (Nigerian citizens’) lives and property”.

Police have yet to pinpoint what triggered the violence, which began on Sunday when protesters armed with makeshift weapons roamed the streets of Pretoria’s business district, pelting shops with rocks and petrol bombs and running off with goods.

Nigeria is MTN’s biggest market, with 58 million users in 2018 and accounts for a third of the South African group’s core profit.

valarinz:
Just got this from mtn now

okeyumez:
Its Nigerian workers that will suffer for it if MTN leaves Nigeria

thesicilian:
MTN keeps publicly condemning but never really do anything concrete. They know how to lobby the government to get juicy contracts but when it comes to lobbying their own government to prevent loss of lives and property, their arms are folded.

Pojomojo:
Adewunmi Ogunsanya owns Multichoice Nigeria and the assets belong to him and his associates.
Tayo Amusan owns Palms shopping mall. Shoprite is just a tenant.
A lot of SA companies here are franchises owned by Nigerians.

You’re only hurting Nigerians. Stop the violence.

okeyumez:
Its Nigerian workers that will suffer for it if MTN leaves Nigeria

ednut1:
u lack sense. What is the business of mtn with xenophobia in the soweto and pretoria

Denikayan:
Why!

This is a Breach of contract. Subscribers have been manipulated to believe they come first.

If any security challenges, they can consult the security institutions in the country for protection.


What hurts the most is that I won't have the opportunity to get an iphone X. Was already planning to go hang around MTN Ikoyi just in case it's bursted.