The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) is preparing to prosecute MultiChoice Nigeria Limited, its Chief Executive Officer John Ugbe, and several company directors for obstructing an ongoing investigation and ignoring a lawful summons.
According to a charge sheet, FHC/ABJ/CR/197/2025, the commission alleges that the accused wilfully failed to appear before it on March 6, 2025, following an official summons issued on February 25.
The document lists John Ugbe, Gozie Onumonu, Adewunmi Ogunsanya, and five other directors as defendants.
This follows the Federal High Court’s dismissal of a suit filed by MultiChoice on May 8, which sought legal backing for its controversial price hike on DStv and GOtv subscriptions. Justice James Omotosho ruled that the suit was “an abuse of court process”.
The FCCPC claims that the accused deliberately failed to submit documents relevant to its probe, a breach of section 3 of the FCCPC Act 2018.
The charge sheet states: “Being Directors of MultiChoice Nigeria Limited on or about the 6th day of March, 2025, at 23 Jimmy Carter Street, Asokoro, Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Court, [they] caused the aforesaid MultiChoice Nigeria Limited to fail to produce documents which the Company was required to produce, in compliance with a lawful summons issued and dated 25 February, 2025, and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 3 of the FCCPC Act 2018.”
Beyond failing to appear, the commission says MultiChoice’s leadership actively hindered its investigation by refusing to disclose requested documents, an act the FCCPC considers a direct challenge to its regulatory authority.
When the matter came up in court on Tuesday, the Commission’s lawyer informed Justice Omotosho that while the company had been served, the individual directors named in the charge had not yet received personal service. Justice Omotosho subsequently adjourned the case until October 7, 2025, for arraignment.
This issue is rooted in FCCPC’s concerns over repeated and unexplained price increases by MultiChoice. In February, the Commission summoned Ugbe to explain what it described as “frequent price hikes, potential abuse of market dominance, and anti-competitive practices.” It warned that failure to provide clear justification could trigger regulatory sanctions.
MultiChoice objected, filing a case through its legal team led by Onigbanjo SAN. The company argued it had not been given a fair hearing and sought to block the Commission from taking further action, citing a letter dated March 3, 2025. The court, however, dismissed the suit, stating that it was an attempt to stall accountability.
