Lawyer Drags MTN Nigeria To Court For Disconnecting His SIM Card

A Legal Practitioner, Ikedi Agunkwu, Esq., has filed a lawsuit against MTN Nigeria over barring, blocking and disconnecting him from making calls on the 6^th day of April, 2022.

The UNIJOS-trained lawyer, filed the lawsuit at the High Court, Owerri, Imo State in Suit Number HOW/402/2022 (IKEDI AGUNKWU, ESQ. VS. MTN NIGERIA COMMUNICATIONS PLC), a copy of the Writ of Summons, which was personally prepared and signed by him, and as representing himself in court was sighted by The Lawyer.

Agunkwu, who is the Founder and Principal Counsel at Ikedi Agunkwu Chambers is praying the court for the following reliefs:

• A DECLARATION that there is a contractual relationship between the Plaintiff and the Defendant, in that the Plaintiff is a customer and subscriber of the Defendant’s network services.
• A DECLARATION that the barring, blocking or disconnection of the Plaintiff’s Mobile Telephone Network Number: ****8938 from making calls on the 6^th day of April, 2022, without justification is wrongful and a flagrant breach of the contractual obligations, which the Defendant owes to the Plaintiff as a customer and subscriber of the Defendant’s network services.
• AN ORDER on the Defendant, to pay the Plaintiff the sum of N100,000,000.00 (One Hundred Million Naira Only) as general damages for breach of contract.

In the Statement of Claim, the Plaintiff avers that he is a customer and subscriber of the Defendant, and the owner and user of MTN Mobile Telephone Number: **********8938 since 2005. The Plaintiff, as a senior member of the Nigerian Bar Association owns and constantly uses the aforesaid Mobile Telephone Number for the facilitation of his professional business which is Legal Practice and Consultancy.

He stated that the cause of action arose in Owerri, Imo State when his aforesaid Mobile Telephone Number was barred, blocked or disconnected from making calls on the 6^th day of April, 2022 at about 7:00 AM.

He also stated that he discovered this unfortunate, embarrassing, annoying and frustrating situation when he dialed his Law Firm’s Secretary’s Mobile Telephone Number at about 7:00 AM to issue out directives, but was informed by the Defendant as follows: “Hello, your line has been barred from making calls. Please, submit your NIN to get your line re-activated. Dial *785H and follow the … to submit your NIN”. The Plaintiff further avers that he also dialed the Mobile Telephone Numbers of his clients, colleagues, friends and relations that he seriously had need to have telephone conversation with on useful issues, but to no avail.

He stated that he severally called the Defendant’s Call Centre, and was subsequently assured by the Defendant that the issue would be rectified after 24 hours. He stated that the Defendant duly rectified the issue on the 7^th April, 2022 at about 7:03am.

Agunkwu, stated that the act of barring, blocking or disconnecting him from making useful calls with his aforesaid Mobile Telephone Number on the 6^th day of April, 2022, without justification is unreasonable and unwarranted, despite the fact that the Defendant had sent a text message to the Plaintiff via the Plaintiff’s aforesaid Mobile Telephone Number on the 1^st day of February, 2022 at about 11:34 AM, stating as follows: “Dear Customer, NIN ****** 5850 has been linked to your line ****8938. Thank you”. He stated that he submitted or provided his NIN to the Defendant a long time ago, and in response, the Defendant sent the above quoted test message to him in proof of confirmation that his NIN has been verified and linked to the Plaintiff’s aforesaid Mobile Telephone Number.

He stated that his aforesaid Mobile Telephone Number is his one and only private and professional business line, and he does not own and use any other line from any other Mobile Network Operator, and stated that he has only one source of income which is Legal Practice and Consultancy.

“Agunkwu stated that he suffered untold hardship, pains, pangs, embarrassment, disappointment, inconvenience, discomfort, retardation of professional progression, frustration, loss of income, mental and psychological stress as a result of the unreasonable, unwarranted and unjustifiable act of the Defendant on the 6^th day of April, 2022”.

“The Plaintiff vehemently avers that the act of barring, blocking or disconnecting the Plaintiff from making calls on the 6^th day of April, 2022, without justification is a flagrant breach of the contractual obligations which the Defendant owes to the Plaintiff”.

“The Plaintiff further avers that the act of barring, blocking or disconnecting the Plaintiff from making calls on the 6^th day of April, 2022, without justification violently violates the Plaintiff’s right to freely make call and express his expression to his Law Firm’s staff, clients, colleagues, friends and relations. It is also a security threat and risk.”

The 12^th day of May, 2022 is fixed for the hearing of the lawsuit.