SCANCOM PLC (MTN) vs. NATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS AUTHORITY [2020]DLECT8617

Date	2020-02-24
Suit No.	ECT/APP/008/2019 & ECT/APP/014/2018
Citation No.	[2020]DLECT8617

KISSI AGYEBENG CHAIRMAN

NANIA OWUSU-ANKOMAH SACKEY MEMBER

DR. EZER OSEI YEBOAH-BOATENG MEMBER

KWESI COLEMAN ESQ. SUSANA NYAMPONG ESQ. AND DENNIS ARMAH ESQ.

(HOLDING ANTHONY FORSON JNR. ESQ’SBRIEF) FOR APPELLANT

EVELYN BEDIAKOH-ADU ESQ. FOR RESPONDENT

[2020]DLECT8617
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >SCANCOM PLC (MTN)<o:p></o:p>(APPLICANT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>NATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS AUTHORITY<o:p></o:p>(RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>(ELECTRONIC
COMMUNICATIONS TRIBUNAL)<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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ECT/APP/008/2019 &amp;
ECT/APP/014/2018&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;DATE: 24TH FEBRUARY 2020<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL: <o:p></o:p>KWESI COLEMAN ESQ., SUSANA NYAMPONG ESQ. AND DENNIS ARMAH
ESQ. (HOLDING ANTHONY FORSON JNR. ESQ’SBRIEF) FOR APPELLANT<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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EVELYN BEDIAKOH-ADU ESQ.
FOR RESPONDENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM: <o:p></o:p>KISSI AGYEBENG, CHAIRMAN, NANIA
OWUSU-ANKOMAH SACKEY, MEMBER AND DR. EZER OSEI YEBOAH-BOATENG, MEMBER<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border-top:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%;
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solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">RULING<o:p></o:p>

</div>KISSI AGYEBENG: (giving the ruling of
the Tribunal)<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>1&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
This
is an application mounted on consolidated appeals from certain decisions of the
respondent, the institution which regulates the provision of communications services
in the Republic. The applicant (a mobile network operator) is praying the
Tribunal to stay the execution of one of such decisions pending the
determination of the consolidated appeals. The application, filed on 16
November 2019, is brought under Reg. 9(2) of the Electronic Communications
(Rules of Procedure of the Electronic Communications Tribunal) Regulations,
2016.<a href="file:///C:/Users/aggie/Desktop/ECT/MTN%20-%20Consolidated.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title="">[1]</a><o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>2&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
By
two letters dated 2 July 2019 and 6 August 2019, the respondent imposed
sanctions in the sums of GHC50,000.00 and GHC120,000.00, respectively, on the
applicant for breaches of license conditions in respect of telephone voice
service quality in the Greater Accra, Eastern, Central, Northern, North East,
Savannah and Ashanti Regions in the first instance, and in the Western, Western
North, Bono, Bono East, Ahafo, Volta, Oti, Upper East and Upper West Regions in
the second instance between 11 March 2019 to 6 April 2019 and 6 May 2019 to 4
June 2019.<a href="file:///C:/Users/aggie/Desktop/ECT/MTN%20-%20Consolidated.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title="">[2]</a>
Specifically, the sanctions were imposed on the applicant for its alleged
failure by the applicant to meet speech quality and call setup time obligation
under its Third Generation (3G) license in some district capitals of the stated
regions. &nbsp;<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>3&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Dissatisfied,
the applicant lodged an appeal at the Tribunal against these decisions on 12
September 2019. On an application heard and granted on 14 January 2020, the
appeal was consolidated with a similar pending appeal, involving the same
parties, filed on 18 December 2018.<a href="file:///C:/Users/aggie/Desktop/ECT/MTN%20-%20Consolidated.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title="">[3]</a>
The determination of the present application has had to naturally abide the
housekeeping matters attending the consolidation.&nbsp; &nbsp;<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The Claim<o:p></o:p>4&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
In
an affidavit in support of the application sworn to by the applicant’s Senior
Manager for Regulatory &amp; Government Affairs, Enyonam Adinyira, the
applicant contends that there exist exceptional circumstances that provide an
appropriate basis for the Tribunal to exercise its discretion in its favour. <o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>