By Joy Baba-Yesufu
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has approved the disconnection of Exchange Telecommunications Limited (Exchange) from MTN Nigeria Communications Limited (MTN) due to the non-payment of interconnect charges.
The NCC disclosed that Exchange was notified of the application for disconnection and given an opportunity to present its case; however, after examining the circumstances surrounding the indebtedness, the Commission concluded that Exchange did not provide sufficient justification for its failure to settle the outstanding charges.
In accordance with Section 100 of the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003, and the Guidelines on Procedure for Granting Approval to Disconnect Telecommunications Operators, 2012, the disconnection will take effect five (5) days from the date of this notice.
Following the disconnection, MTN will cease passing voice and data traffic through Exchange and will instead use alternative channels to interconnect with other network service providers.
The NCC emphasized that the disconnection will remain in effect until further notice or as determined by the Commission.
