The Great Data Contradiction: Why We Are Taking MTN, Airtel, Glo, DStv and FCCPC to Court
Today, our team of lawyers appeared at the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, in the case against MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria, Glo World, FCCPC, and DStv.
The legal team, led by Barrister Ogbaga Ogba Immanuel, appeared pro bono. We were at the court before 8:00 a.m. to formally commence proceedings. However, the court adjourned the matter to November 18th.
We will return on the 15th and we will not relent in speaking out about what telecom operators are doing to Nigerians. We will continue to pursue all legal challenges until the relevant authorities put an end to what we consider open exploitation of Nigerian consumers by these large corporations.
Our case is simple:
If I purchase a 30-day data plan and use it heavily, the network informs me that my data has been exhausted after just a few days. The justification is straightforward: you have consumed all you paid for.
Fair enough.
But if I use the same data sparingly and still have a balance on the 30th day, the remaining data suddenly expires. The justification then changes: your subscription has reached the end of its validity period.
So which principle is actually governing the transaction?
If the argument is that I am being charged based on usage, then why should unused data expire at all? I have not consumed what I paid for.
If the argument is that I paid for 30 days of access, then why is the data allowed to run out before those 30 days are over? Should I not continue to have access until the agreed expiration date?
The industry appears to switch between two contradictory principles, depending on which one benefits the service provider at that particular moment.
When heavy usage favours the network, they say: “You have used it all.”
When light usage favours the customer, they say: “Your time is up.”
The customer loses under both systems.
This inconsistency becomes even more obvious when compared with airtime.
Your airtime does not disappear simply because 30 days have passed. It remains yours until you actually spend it. The network does not wake up one morning and confiscate your remaining airtime because a calendar date has arrived.
Why then should paid data be treated differently?
The principle should be consistent.
If a data bundle has a fixed expiration date, then the purchased volume should remain available until that date, regardless of how quickly or slowly it is used.
Conversely, if the network insists that data can be completely exhausted at any time based solely on consumption, then there is no logical basis for imposing an expiry date on any unused balance. Once I have paid for it, what I have not consumed should remain mine until I consume it.
You cannot simultaneously tell customers, “Your data can finish before the validity period because usage matters,” and then turn around to say, “Your remaining data has expired because the validity period matters.”
Those are two different charging philosophies. Switching between them depending on which one increases company revenue is not a coherent billing principle — it is a contradiction.
The question is simple: When consumers pay for data, are they buying a quantity of data, or are they buying time?
If the answer is data, then unused data should never expire.
If the answer is time, then the purchased data should remain available throughout that entire period, regardless of consumption patterns.
The current system attempts to have it both ways, and in every scenario, the consumer bears the loss.
And this is why we have gone to court.
In South Africa, the regulator, ICASA, has ordered MTN and Vodacom to stop allowing data to expire. New rules stipulate that unused data, voice and SMS must be rolled over automatically, at no extra cost, once the bundle’s validity period ends.
MTN and Vodacom did not comply quietly. They took ICASA to court to try to block the regulation and now face fines of about R5 million each for non-compliance — about N410 million.
That is the real story: a regulator with teeth forcing telcos to defend themselves in court for trying to keep consumers’ unused data. And that is MTN’s home country.
In Kenya, a lawyer sued Safaricom, Airtel and Telkom over data expiry. Before the case was even decided, Safaricom abolished expiry on data, voice and SMS bundles entirely.
Pressure worked.
In Nigeria, MTN faces no such regulation. No expiry rule. No rollover mandate. Just petitions and advocacy groups appealing politely while our data continues to disappear on schedule.
I have read comments from Nigerians saying, “KAA, you are too small for this case, go and sit down.” Well, that is the problem with many young people of this generation.
The former military heads of state we have in Nigeria took power when they were in their 20s and 30s. Today, we have many young people who would rather hide behind their keyboards, complain, and discourage those who are taking real action, instead of acting themselves.
Even if I fail, I will proudly tell anyone who cares to listen that I did all I could.
My appreciation goes to all the lawyers who have spent nights and personal resources on this cause. This is a fight for every Nigerian. And thank you to everyone who came out to support us today.
(C) – KAA
