By Emma Njoku
MultiChoice Africa Holdings (MAH), the parent company of MultiChoice Nigeria, has rejected Tuesday’s ruling of the Tax Appeal Tribunal (TAT), which dismissed its appeal against the $342million Value Added Tax (VAT) bill slapped on it by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
The Tax Appeal Tribunal (TAT), on Tuesday, struck out the appeal instituted by the South African company against the Nigerian government owned Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) over a $342 million tax assessment handed to the firm.
The tax appeal tribunal struck out the appeal “for want of diligent prosecution.”
MultiChoice, in a statement, yesterday evening, said it will lodge an appeal against the ruling at the Federal High Court, adding that the TAT ruling was based on technicality rather than the merits of the case.
“MAH respectfully disagrees with the ruling, which was based on technicality rather than the merits of the case. Therefore, we will be lodging an appeal at the Federal High Court against the ruling.
“This tax appeal is a separate and distinct matter from the appeal launched by MultiChoice Nigeria (MCN), in which the TAT found in MCN’s favour last week, allowing it to proceed with that appeal,” the company stated.