MultiChoice Nigeria Challenges Tribunal on DStv, GOtv Price Hike

Multichoice Nigeria has challenged the jurisdiction of the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal sitting in Abuja restraining it from increasing the prices of its DStv and GOtv packages.

Multichoice’s lawyer, Moyosore Onigbanjo, said he filed an application on April 30 challenging the jurisdiction of the tribunal to make the order it made on April 29.

During the court proceeding, on Tuesday, Onibanjo told the tribunal to decline jurisdiction on the suit filed by Festus Onifade, saying such a price dispute case had been decided before in favour of his client.

Besides, the senior lawyer said he also filed a memorandum of conditional appearance on the same date.

He argued that where the jurisdiction of the court is challenged, the issue had to be decided before proceeding on other matters.

Lawyer to the FCCPC, M. Adeke, said though he had been served with the processes in the matter, he sought an adjournment to enable the commission to respond to all the applications served on it.

Onigbanjo equally sought an adjournment to enable him to respond to fresh processes served on him by Festus Onifade.

He, however, insisted that where the issue of jurisdiction is raised, such must be addressed first.

The lawyer, Festus Onifade, who dragged Multi-Choice before the CCPT did not oppose the application for adjournment and the tribunal, presided over by Thomas Okosun, adjourned the matter until May 16 for a hearing.

Earlier, Onifade instituted contempt charges against the Manager of the Abuja office of Multi-Choice Nigeria Ltd, Mr Mohammed Sani, over alleged disobedience to the court order.

In a Notice of Consequence of Disobedience to Order of Court, Form 48, marked: CCPT/OP/02/2024 dated and filed on May 7, the notice, warned Sani against disregarding the tribunal order.

“Take notice that unless you obey the under-listed order of the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal, Abuja, given on the 29th day of April 2024; thus:

“An order restraining the 1st defendant/respondent either by itself, agents, representatives, officers or privies, howsoever described from carrying out the impending increase in tariffs and cost of its products and services intended to take effect from 1st May 2024, until the hearing and determination of the motion on notice already filed before this tribunal.

“You will be guilty of contempt of this tribunal and will be committed to prison.”

Also in a motion on notice dated and filed May 7, Onifade sought an order of the tribunal, directing Multi-Choice to pay the sum of N1 billion “or any amount the tribunal deems fit appropriate in the circumstance for deliberately disobeying, contravening, and failing to comply with the interim order granted on April 29.

He contended that the lawyer said despite the order which was validly served on Multi-Choice on April 29, the firm deliberately neglected the order and wilfully increased the tariffs on its products and services on May 1.

He alleged that the company had a history of disobeying court/tribunal orders.

In the affidavit attached to the application, Onifade detailed how the company has been disobedient to court orders.

He said in 2015, Justice C. J Aneke of the Federal High Court, Ikeja-Lagos gave an order restraining the company from increasing the prices of its products and services, but it went ahead and increased in-spite of the order of the court.

He added that in 2018, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of FHC, Abuja granted an order obtained by CPC now FCCPC, restraining the firm from increasing its prices of products pending the matter before it, but the order was not obeyed.

According to him, the actions and attitude of the Multichoice was so reprehensible that the then CPC now FCCPC described it as a violation of the rights of Nigerian consumers and those increases done then were in bad faith.

Onifade further said in 2022, the tribunal granted an order on March 22, 2022, restraining Multi-Choice from increasing its tariffs but it went ahead with the tariff hike on April 1, claiming it was a completed act.

He contended that despite the service and receipt of the order, the company, flagrantly and wilfully disobeyed the order and went ahead without recourse to the plight of customers and increased the tariffs of its services and products on May 1.

Onifade said the firm filed a motion before the tribunal dated April 29 but filed April 30, claiming that the matter before the court is res judicata and completed act.

According to him, the non-compliance with the order of the tribunal granted on the 29th of April, 2024 is deliberate and an affront to the jurisdiction of this Honourable Tribunal and has brought untold hardship on the claimant.

The lawyer, who said the tribunal had the discretionary powers to grant the application, said it was in the interest of justice to grant his request

Recall that the Tribunal had, on April 29, made an interim order, restraining the pay-TV firm from increasing DStv and Gotv tariffs scheduled to begin on May 1, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

May 08, 2024