Chinenye Anuforo

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said that the licence, operations and spectrum in possession of 9mobile can only be transferred to a preferred bidder, Teleology Holding only after the conclusion of its technical capability.

The Executive Vice Chairman  (EVC) of NCC, Umar Garba Danbatta, who disclosed this yesterday in Lagos at the interactive session with media in Lagos, said, “there are two components of 9mobile sale, the financial evaluation which CBN is driving and the technical evaluation which will be done by NCC. After the first stage, a preferred bidder has emerged and I must say before the preferred bidder emerged, it involved the full participation of representatives of NCC.”

He explained  that when CBN is done with its work of establishing the preferred bidder’s financial capability, NCC will then come in to ascertain the technical capacity before the company would be handed over to the winner.

The EVC stated that, “the licence, operations and spectrum in the possession of 9mobile can only be transferred to the preferred bidder with reports of NCC board on certification that the preferred bidder has the technical capacity. 

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“That process has not taken place and NCC insists on doing the technical evaluation on whoever emerges the preferred bidder.”

He reassured stakeholders of its commitment to ensure that 9mobile was duly taken over by investors with the requisite technical capability and pedigree to manage the organisation.

Danbatta also hinted that the commission is currently  seeking for a review of the National Economic Council’s recommendation on ways that will eliminate multiple taxation and regulations that have created bottlenecks in provision of services in different states of the federation. 

He noted that the commission hopes to attain the recommendation of the National Broadband Plan and possibly surpass it by the end of 2018, adding that it has sustained commitment towards bridging the broadband divide. 

“We have intensified effort in provision of connectivity in secondary and tertiary institutions across the country where we provide support in a programme called Digital Access Programme (DAP)  and Digital Appreciation Programme for Tertiary Institutions (ADAPTI).”