THE Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has stated that Meta’s threat to exit Nigeria does not exempt the social media giant from its legal responsibilities.
The Commission emphasized that any ongoing judicial proceedings will not be invalidated by the company’s decision or threat to leave the country.
The Commission said WhatsApp’s warning about possibly leaving Nigeria was a way to stir public sympathy and pressure the regulator into changing its decision.
The agency gave the response in a statement signed by its Director of Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, on Saturday.
This follows an earlier warning by Meta that “it may be forced to effectively shut down the Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria in order to mitigate the risk of enforcement measures”.
On July 19, 2024, the FCCPC fined Meta $220 million for multiple data privacy violations. Meta is also the parent company of WhatsApp.
The fine followed an investigation into Meta and WhatsApp (together referred to as the “Meta Parties”) over alleged breaches of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act and the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation.
The Commission stated that the Meta Parties repeatedly violated the FCCPA (2018) and the NDPR.
These violations included denying Nigerians control over their data, sharing Nigerian user data without permission, treating Nigerian users unfairly compared to those in other countries, and abusing their market power by imposing unfair privacy policies.
On April 25, the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal upheld the $220 million fine imposed on Meta Platforms Incorporated by the FCCPC.
Meta has previously been fined for similar violations, including $1.5 billion in Texas and $1.3 billion for breaching EU data privacy rules.
The company has also faced penalties for similar issues in India, South Korea, France, and Australia.
The FCCPC pointed out that Meta didn’t use blackmail or threats to leave those countries, but instead followed the regulations.
It added that a threat to leave Nigeria won’t make the agency change its decision.
The statement reads, “WhatsApp’s claim that it may be forced to exit Nigeria due to FCCPC’s recent order appears to be a calculated move aimed at inducing negative public reaction and potentially pressuring the FCCPC to reconsider its decision.
“The FCCPC investigated Meta Platforms and WhatsApp (jointly referred to as “Meta Parties”) for allegedly violating the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) and the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR).
“The Commission found that Meta Parties engaged in multiple and repeated infringements of the FCCPA (2018) and the NDPR. These infringements included denying Nigerians the right to control their personal data, transferring and sharing Nigerian user data without authorisation, discriminating against Nigerian users compared to users in other jurisdictions and abusing their dominant market position by forcing unfair privacy policies.
“Interestingly, Meta had been fined for similar breaches in Texas ($1.5b) and only recently was asked to pay $1.3 Billion for violating E.U. Data Privacy Rules. Elsewhere in India, South Korea, France and Australia, Meta had faced varying penalties for similar breaches. But Meta never resorted to the blackmail of threatening to exit those countries. They obeyed.
“The recent affirmation of FCCPC’s final order by the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal requires Meta Parties to take steps to comply with Nigerian law, stop exploiting Nigerian consumers, change their practices to meet Nigerian standards and respect consumer rights, consistent with international best practices.
“Threatening to leave Nigeria does not absolve Meta of liabilities for the outcome of a judicial process.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the FCCPC remains committed in its pursuit of consumer protection and data privacy towards ensuring a fairer digital market in Nigeria.”