The Nigerian Communications Commission has temporarily postponed its intended ban on Glo users contacting MTN lines for 21 days.
As a follow-up to its Pre-Disconnection Notice published on January 8, 2024, the commission announced this in a statement signed by its Director of Public Affairs, Reuben Mouka, on Thursday.
The commission announced in the first notification that it has permitted MTN Nigerian Communications Plc. to begin the phased disconnection of Globacom Limited on January 18, 2024, as a result of the parties’ long-standing interconnection debt dispute.
The NCC announced the extension, stating, “The commission is pleased to announce that the parties have now reached an agreement to resolve all outstanding issues between them.” As a result, and in accordance with its regulatory responsibilities, the commission has postponed the phased disconnection for 21 days, beginning today, January 17, 2024.
“Whilst the commission expects MTN and Glo to resolve all outstanding issues within the 21 days, the commission insists that interconnect debts must be settled by all operating companies as a necessary component towards compliance with regulatory obligations of all licensees.”
It stated that its clearance for disconnection would have potential consequences for consumers.
In its extension notice, the NCC emphasized that mobile network operators and other telecom licensees must follow the terms and conditions of their licenses, particularly those specified in their interconnection agreements.
Earlier on Thursday, the commission stated that it would notify Globacom subscribers of the next actions following the expiration of a 10-day grace period for the prohibition of calls to MTN lines.
On Wednesday, Muoka stated, “We will release some information about that.” Most likely, within the next few hours.
The interconnect charge is the fee that telecom providers pay each other for calls that terminate on their networks.
MTN and Glo have been at odds about this fee for quite some time.
In 2019, MTN momentarily removed Glo subscribers over an N4 billion debt.
According to a Glo source, the telco has already paid.
The insider told news men, “We paid within the time limit. So it’s unexpected that this is
happening. We’ve already made our owing payments.”
Another industry source confirmed the payment to news men, but stated that there are still problems with interest payments.
According to the source, the National Assembly has also stepped in.
According to the source, “It is still not settled. The NCC has gotten involved and is awaiting a resolution. They (MTN) are still waiting for the NCC’s instructions. The National Assembly has also summoned the two corporations.
“The owing party has paid a considerable portion of their debt. However, they still owe interest and VAT payment.”
Source:PunchNG