MTN
has finally admitted it illegally moved $13.9 Billion out of Nigeria
following accusations that Buhari's Minister of Trade and Investment,
Okechukwu Enelamah, participated in the act.
Following allegations that MTN illegally repatriated $13.9 billion
out of the country, the company has finally admitted it did it. This was
revealed during a hearing by the Senate Committee on Banks, Insurance
and Other Financial Institutions. MTN said circumstances compelled it to
move funds without observing the law.
According to ThisDay, the Senate had on September 27, 2016, alleged
that MTN in connivance with the Minister of Trade and Investment,
Okechukwu Enelamah, and four commercial banks exploited the porous
Nigerian financial system to move the money out of the country without
the required authorization.
The Minister had denied that claim. The Senate according to a
motion moved by Senator Dino Melaye (Kogi West) on September 27, alleged
that MTN smartly beat Nigeria's financial regulatory laws by failing to
obtain a certificate of capital importation (CCI) as authorised by CBN
Financial and Miscellaneous Act within 24 hours between 2006 and 2016
before moving the money out of the country.
It further alleged that the repatriation was done through four
banks, viz: Standard Chartered Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Diamond Bank and Citi
Bank.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MTN, Fedi Moolman, admitted
that the company moved funds without complying with the 24-hour order
for the issuance of CCI, saying it was practically impossible to do so.
Nevertheless, he stated that the action was taken without any
deliberate intention to flout Nigerian laws but was rather compelled to
do so because of circumstances which he said made it impossible for it
to observe the 24-hour provision in the Act for issuance of CCI.
He said: "There was no intention to flout the rule and
regulation. The 24-hour rule is not in all cases practicable and it is
almost impossible to comply with."
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