₦airaland Forum

Gsteve01:
Their problem. Make dem use the penalty load us airtime na!
Buhari go kuku squander the money!
The boy above me has a destiny fixed to that useless fixed odd.

Preator:
Our laws provides for the right to fair representation/hearing. You may employ the best legal team money can buy. And its a case of innocent until proven guilty.

Actuarydeji:
Abi! What happened in New Zealand is a clear example that our lawyers are stomach infrastructure. Offa robbery suspect have a lawyer defending them, but in New Zealand no lawyer step forward to defend the terrorist that killed people in a mosque.

sonature1:
Buhari may be a dullard, but I like his tough stance in disciplining certain people and companies.

He should extend that to his cabinet members to be taken seriously.

Despite all the noise about Buhari fighting corruption and improving Nigerian economy, all the widely accepted rating standards for Nigeria remain negative or below average. This is not good for an administration that blows its own trumpet.

Lovelyn451:
MTN pay your tax, your level of income has increased over the years, you can't keep paying the same amount every year...with all their business innovation that is pumping in money, the tax should be more than $2b sef

MyGeneration:
But the fines are becoming too much on Mtn. Mtn is one of Nigeria's best companies, let us not drive them away with all these fines, apart from Mtn network no other Network in Nigeria is 100percent reliable.

Then imagine a world without Mtn Glo might even reduce from bad to worst since competition is no longer there.

Mtn just paid over 1billiion dollar fine by the Nigerian government last year, now another fine. Have you not discovered that Mtn no longer does any free stuff any more, and all those its project fame and the rest.

Lovelyn451:
tax is a civic duty, it is not negotiable, whether they do free stuff or not, tax must be paid

edunwablog:
The Federal Government has insisted that telecommunications firm, MTN, must pay the $2 billion tax penalty slammed on it by the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation.

At hearing of the case yesterday, government lawyer, Tijani Gazali, according to Bloomberg, prayed the Lagos High Court to throw out the Johannesburg-based company’s application to stop it from paying backdated taxes.

However, MTN’s counsel, Wole Olanipekun, said the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, who imposed the penalty, lacked the powers to do so.

The firm had previously denied it did not pay taxes properly in the West African nation. The case was adjourned until May 7.

Meanwhile, the matter resulted in MTN shares falling as much a 6.8 per cent, the most since October 5 before paring losses to 0.1 per cent by close in Johannesburg.

The share price has fallen 16 per cent since it was hit by a double Nigerian penalty in mid-2018.

The Central Bank of Nigeria first ordered it to transfer $8.1 billion of repatriated dividends back to the country before Malami announced the measure on taxes.

The company settled the former dispute in December, agreeing to send back $53 million and clearing itself of any wrongdoing.

https://www.akelicious.net/2019/03/government-insists-on-mtn-paying-2b-tax.html

MyGeneration:
2bililion dollar tax penalty. Its not mtn's fault that previous administrations preferred bribe over going through there tax books.

The Nigerian government does not know the exact tax Mtn is owing they just fined them 2billion dollars just like that.

frugal:
The tough stance is why businesses are folding up and running away, and new ones not willing to come in and invest.

Actuarydeji:
It is a pity that our lawyers have subjected their profession to a mockery thing and also I don't see any to be professional anymore. Imagine, MTN sending billions of dollars to SA and these shameless and unrepented lawyers are still defending MTN and even trying to tell the AGF that he lacks the power to impose taxes on MTN. Can Globacom try that in Ghana? It is not possible! Kick out the stupid company out of Nigeria, after all their workers were treated as a second class citizen in their country. What a shame!

MyGeneration:
2bililion dollar tax penalty. Its not mtn's fault that previous administrations preferred bribe over going through there tax books.

The Nigerian government does not know the exact tax Mtn is owing they just fined them 2billion dollars just like that.

zabuur:
I don't know if this solution is lawful.

Retrieve their license. Chase them out of the country. Disallow them to take even a pen. Auction all their assets.

We will definitely recover a significant part of the tax

sonature1:
I know that u lots are used to Nigeria being a lawless country, but this country needs a paradigm change.

Yes, MTN must pay the fine.

Gforce2019:
... and your own destiny has been melted in liquid substance.
Eediot yamiri!

9jaRealist:
Why shouldn’t they send billions to SA? Didn’t they bring billions to Nigeria?

We Nigerians cannot be bitching about the crude xenophobia of many South Africans when a lot of Nigerians are just as XENOPHOBIC (or even worse in many cases). And the most appalling thing about Nigerian xenophobia is that Nigerians make a living all across the globe, and even brag about send back tens of billions of dollars from those countries back to Nigeria. SMH

Actuarydeji:
You just displayed your ignorance. Go and do your research, they only came with ideal, an abstract ideology

9jaRealist:
I never meant to insult you. I am very sorry
I decline to climb down into the gutter of personal insults with you, because I was raised much better...

Nonetheless, on the SUBSTANCE of the matter under discourse, I do not exactly what you are trying to say by “ideal, an abstract ideology” but we all know for a certainty that MTN brought $285 million to pay for its operating license, and pursuant thereto brought in billions of dollars to build thousands of cell sites across Nigeria. Of course because Nigeria is a country disgracefully characterized by prevalent insecurity and poor-to-nonexistent infrastructure each cell site meant not only paying for CofOs and to the local baale or chief, but also paying for private security and sometimes local vigilantes or the often ubiquitous so-called ‘youth groups’, and because Nigeria shamefully cannot adequately provide even basic public electricity paying for 1 or 2 generators per site (the 2d generator to backup the 1st).

MTN’s investment and operations has provided TENS OF THOUSANDS OF JOBS FOR NIGERIANS directly and even more jobs indirectly, many of such Nigerians who would otherwise be pulling thug duties for the corrupt politicians that so many Nigerians idolize and worship or engage in Yahoo, cultism, stealing used panties and such other nefarious activities. Those jobs not only provide these Nigerians with a decent honest livelihood that affords them the means to take care of their families and contribute to general economic activities (by buying stuff, paying rent, going to the dentist, etc.), but the income taxes paid by each job holder generates revenue for the government which (if not first stolen by the politicians you are cheering for) is then be invested in social infrastructure such as schools, healthcare and public transportation.

It is rather shocking that a lot of Nigerians apparently do not have a basic understanding of how market economies work, but whether you are an Akara ball or Aso oke seller, ultimately every market participant (or investor) seeks to get more from the market than they came in with.

9jaRealist:
Many Nigerians seem unable to grasp the basic concept of RULE OF LAW - and the government apparently even less so...

The Attorney-General is NOT the tax authority and CANNOT just wake up one day and proclaim anyone’s (foreign or Nigerian taxpayer’s) tax liability from numbers that he might as well have pulled out from his backside. The LAW provides a statutory process of assessing and determining taxpayers’ tax liabilities, including an appeal process and a judicial determination of any alleged liability (if necessary). Even with such a horribly incompetent Attorney-General (as seen with respect to several other matters), obeisance and respect for our own properly-constituted laws should be the very minimum requirement for a nation that portends (or even publicly pretends) to be nation of laws.

Nigerians often ponder why and bemoan the fact that Nigeria does not receive anywhere near the levels of foreign investment that many other countries of similar endowment and characteristics receive (and that even much smaller African markets such as Ghana and Rwanda receive even much higher levels of investment), but this is a PRIMARY reason why - the arbitrary and cavalier disrespect for the rule of law. Contrary to much of the (frankly xenophobic) sentiment being expressed on many comments here, foreign investors are NOT against paying taxes or fulfilling other corporate obligations. They just expect a TRANSPARENT/PREDICTABLE process not arbitrary ministerial proclamations.

Actuarydeji:
I never meant to insult you. I am very sorry