By Levinus Nwabughiogu Mobile Telecommunication Network, MTN, said yesterday that since its incorporation in 2001, it has invested...
By Levinus Nwabughiogu
Mobile Telecommunication Network, MTN, said yesterday that
since its incorporation in 2001, it has
invested N3.4 trillion in the Nigerian economy.
The company also said it has paid over N2.5 trillion in
taxes, levies and other regulatory fees as at December 2021, including N669
billion in 2021 alone.
The General Manager, Financial Operations of MTN, Yemisi
Adeleye, disclosed this while appearing before the House of Representatives
Committee on Public Accounts, PAC.
Also, the company’s
Senior Manager, External Relations, Yemisi Adeleye, said the company had submitted all documentary
evidence to the committee on request.
He said: “I can confirm that, like many of our private
sector peers and contemporaries, we have been asked to provide evidence to the
House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts as part of an on-going
investigation into revenue losses identified in the Auditor General’s reports
on the Federal Government’s accounts.
“MTN has received formal confirmation from the Committee
Chairman that it is not the subject of the investigation, and is always happy
to demonstrate our full compliance with and commitment to all extant tax and
regulatory obligations with respect to our operations.
”As such, the requested documents were submitted to the
Committee today, Wednesday 23rd March 2022, at a hearing attended by Yemisi
Adeleye, our General Manager, Financial Operations and Segun Odebunmi, Head of
Tax in MTN.
“It should be noted that we have submitted extensive
documentation to the house, including the documentation submitted today, in a
range of similar investigations over the last few years.
“Since incorporation in 2001, MTN has invested more than
NGN3.4 trillion into the Nigerian economy, and as at December 2021, has paid
more than NGN2.5 trillion in taxes, levies and other regulatory fees, including
N669 billion in 2021 alone.”
The committee chairman, Wole Oke, had earlier expressed
displeasure with the company, since it was unwilling to make available all
relevant documents to aide its work on the taxes of the company.
The committee said that the company had failed to tender a
certificate of assets status issued by the Ministry of Trade and Investment.
According to the committee, the certificate is expected to
contain the assets of the company which determines how much tax that is
expected of them.
Alleging that most of the companies were evading taxation,
Oke said the attitude of the telecom firm was ‘disrespectful to parliament, especially
considering the fact that the company replied parliament’s invitation letter to
the MD through an Executive Director.
The committee then directed the Nigerian Customs Service,
NCS, to furnish it with all MTN import duty documents as well as other relevant
tax documents to ascertain if waivers to the company were legitimately given.
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