Consumer Protection Council (CPC) has directed MTN Communications Limited to pay N1,850,000 to one of the winners of its Ultimate Wonder Promo for lack of due diligence. CPC’s order came on the heels of a complaint brought by Mr. Omeje Chukwuma Fidelis against the telecommunications giant that he had been underpaid after he was declared winner of N2 million in the said sales promotion, which was held in 2012.

According to Omeje, he participated in the promo and was called through MTN line 180 on October 10, 2012 that he had won N2million in the Ultimate Wonder Promo and that on October 12 of the same year he got a text message informing him of the presentation ceremony fixed for October 19 at the Nicon Luxury Hotel, Abuja. The complainant asserted that during the said ceremony, he was presented with a dummy cheque of N2million with his name on it, interviewed and paraded before the media and the world as a winner of the said amount.

He recounted further that he was stunned to receive another call from MTN line 180 on November 2, 2012 that his winning was N150,000 and was thereafter given a Verve ATM card for that amount. MTN, in its response to the Council’s intervention, denied the claim of Omeje, saying that he was from the on-set informed that his winning was N150,000 and that the complainant deceitfully presented himself when winners in the N2million category were called forward on the day of the prize presentation. The company stated further that Omeje’s antics was discovered at the verification of winners, which was done after the ceremony and he was thereafter contacted through its 180 line on his misrepresentation pursuant to which he apologised.

CPC demanded for the call data of the communications of the 10th of October 2012 when Omeje was informed of his winnings of N150,000, but MTN failed, refused and neglected to comply with the request made both in 2012 and 2016. The CPC, in its Orders, frowned at the consistent refusal of MTN to provide “the call data records evidencing details of communication with the complainant”, declaring that “in the absence of this material evidence which is solely in the possession of the respondent the CPC must resolve the issue in favour of the complainant”. It further declared that the “the process of the MTN Ultimate Wonder Promotion whereby the verification exercise was conducted after winners were identified, declared and winnings presented publicly is grossly flawed, lacking in transparency, inequitable and apparently calculated to deceive consumers”.

CPC, on the strength of these observations, therefore directed MTN to pay within 14 days of receipt of ITS Order, the sum of N1,850,000 “being the unpaid part of the two million Naira prize won by the complainant in the 2012 MTN Ultimate Wonder Promotion”. Commenting on the issue, Mrs. Dupe Atoki, Council’s director general, reaffirmed the obligation of businesses to desist from promos that are not honest, transparent, equitable and faithful or designed to deceive consumers”.
Thank's for reading my article CPC Orders MTN to Pay Subscriber N1.85m in Ultimate Promo
Created at 2016-02-13

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