President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday publicly accused the MTN Group of contributing to the casualty figure of about 10,000 Nigerians killed by members of the Boko Haram sect between 2009 and now.
He claimed the telecommunication firm contributed to the figure by selling unregistered SIM cards, which he said were being used by the terrorists.
Buhari spoke while answering a question during a joint press conference he addressed with visiting South African President, Jacob Zuma, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Journalists had sought to know whether the issue of the fine, slammed on the firm by the Nigerian Communications Commission was discussed during a closed-door meeting between the leaders and the decision reached on the matter.
The President, who said he was speaking publicly on the matter for the first time, said the concern of his government was not about the penalty but on the security implications of the telecommunication firm’s inaction.
He explained that because of the security aspect of the offence, his administration decided to leave the NCC, MTN Group and security agencies to sort the matter out in their own way.
The President added that unfortunately for the telecommunication firm, rather than negotiating payment, it dragged the Federal Government before the court.
According to him, the country’s constitution stipulates that no further action should be taken on any issue that is a subject of litigation.
Buhari said since MTN had decided to withdraw the case from court, it was free to go back to the relevant government agencies to see if the fine could be reduced and paid in instalments.
He stated, “You know how the unregistered GSM (SIM cards) are being used by terrorists and between 2009 and today, at least 10,000 Nigerians were killed by Boko Haram.
“That was why the NCC asked MTN, Glo and the rest of them to register GSM subscribers.
“Unfortunately, MTN was very, very slow and contributed to the casualties; and NCC looked at its regulations and imposed the fine.
“Unfortunately for MTN, it went to court and once you go to court, you virtually disarm the government because if the Federal Government refuses to listen to the judiciary, it is going against its own constitution. Therefore the government has to wait.
“I think MTN has seen that and decided to withdraw the case and go back and negotiate with government agencies on what it considered a very steep fine to be reduced and may be given time to pay gradually.”
When asked how far the South African authorities had gone in returning the arms money seized from some Nigerian government officials during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Zuma said relevant government agencies were still investigating the matter.
The South African President, however, gave an assurance that once the investigations were concluded, the right step would be taken.
He said, “With regard to the things that were either confiscated or went to South Africa, the two governments are working on those matters.
“The relevant structures are working on it, but there are some that the necessary departments are doing the investigations.
“We will appreciate if we succeed in recovering all other things in South Africa so that they will be returned.”
Answering another question on xenophobic attacks in his country, Zuma described the situation as unfortunate.
“It is unfortunate because all Africans are the same, but colonialists, through borders, have made them think that they are different but we are the same Africans and that has been our view in addressing the issue of xenophobia.
“We would want our people all over Africa to realise that we are the same and have the same interests,” he said.
As regards the losses incurred by Nigerians and other foreigners during the attacks, Zuma said relevant departments were handling them once the victims could come forward with their claims.
On the economy, Buhari said Nigeria would be partnering South Africa in its quest to diversify its economy.
He said this was because South Africa was ahead of Nigeria in the areas of agriculture and solid minerals.
The President added, “You will recall that even before the elections, our party, the All Progressives Congress, realised the state we were in and we articulated three areas: security, economy and corruption; and here, we identified the way we can improve rapidly on our relationship with South Africa.
“In terms of the economy, we identified agriculture and solid minerals to come to the fore quickly so that we get everybody who is unemployed employed.
“South Africa is far ahead of us in agriculture and solid minerals. So, in diversifying the economy, I think that there is a great room for improvement which is for the better.”
He traced the relationship between Nigeria and South Africa to the apartheid days when Nigeria was one of the frontline states fighting apartheid.
Buhari also said Africa deserved a place in the Security Council of the United Nations, adding that African leaders must continue to make a case for that.
He sympathised with South Africa for its nationals that were killed when a portion of the Synagogue Church Of All Nations collapsed in Lagos in September, 2014.
Zuma said during the meeting he held with Buhari, that they reviewed various bilateral and multilateral issues.
He added that they noted with satisfaction the growing cooperation in many sectors, including trade and investment, defence and security, immigration matters, energy and mineral resources, among others.
He added that having recognised the important role played by the South Africa-Nigeria Binational Commission since its inception in 1999, they had decided to elevate the commission to the level of Heads of State.
In this way, he said he and Buhari would be able to lead as well as monitor the progress in various areas of cooperation.
Zuma said the two countries had signed over 30 bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding.
These agreements, he said, covered a wide range of cooperation areas, including trade and industry, transport, energy, defence and security and immigration, among others.
He disclosed that relevant ministers had been directed to move fast in implementing all signed agreements and to identify joint projects in the key high impact strategic development areas, which would have socio-economic benefits such as employment creation.
While describing Nigeria as South Africa’s key trading partner on the continent, Zuma said prior to 1999, there were only four South African companies in Nigeria.
He however said since 1999, the situation had changed dramatically with over 120 South African companies currently doing business in Nigeria.
He disclosed that an average of 4,000 Nigerians travelled to South Africa on a monthly basis in 2015.
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