MTN Fires Nigeria CEO As NCC Cuts Fine To $3.4bn

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, News Thursday, December 3rd, 2015

BALTIMORE, MD (AFRICAN EXAMINER) – The management of the MTN has sacked its Nigerian CEO, Michael Ikpoki as well as its head of regulatory and corporate affairs, Akinwale Goodluck.

The telecommunication giant in a statement issued Thursday morning by its Corporate Affairs indicated that both Ikpoki and Goodluck, has handed down their voluntary resignation with immediate effect, amidst speculations that they were forced to resign.

The statement said in view of the current situation, a restructuring of the Nigerian unit was deemed fit. The former Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer at “MTN Nigeria, Ferdi Moolman, will become MTN Nigeria’s CEO while Amina Oyagbola has been named head of Regulatory and Corporate Affairs at MTN Nigeria”.

MTN Group simultaneously announced that it was restructuring its operations to strengthen “operational oversight, leadership, governance and regulatory compliance” across its 22 country operations in Africa and the Middle East, adding that the group has now been restructured into three regions, namely, West and Central Africa, South and East Africa and Middle East and North Africa.

The Group Executive Chairman Phuthuma Nhleko affirmed: “this revised structure and strengthened leadership will improve operational oversight and increase management capacity”.

Recall, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) had imposed a fine of $5.2 billion on MTN in October for failing to meet a deadline to disconnect 5.1 million unregistered subscribers slumping the company’s shares by 23 percent of their value since then.

Following this, Nhleko took an executive position in November and led negotiations with the NCC after which its Chief Executive Officer, Sifiso Dabengwa resigned.

In the meantime, NCC in a market update to shareholders Thursday, agreed to cut the fine to $3.4bn and the penalty against MTN as stressed the need to be pay by December 31 2015.