Tribunal upholds FCCPC #190million penalty fine against NBC
By Seun Johnson
The Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal in Abuja has on Monday struck down the proposed settlement deal between the Nigerian Bottling Company Limited (NBCL) and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).
According to the judgement delivered by the three-member panel led by Thomas Okosun in an appeal filed by NBC, the Tribunal upheld the Commission’s N190 million penalty against NBC for misleading packaging of its Coke products, among other issues.
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FCCPC had earlier alleged that Coca-Cola Nigeria Ltd and NBC misled consumers by describing the “Original Taste, Less Sugar” variant of Coca-Cola as identical in formulation to the “Original Taste” variant.
The Bottling Company subsequently approached the Court and requested that it set aside the Commission’s N190 million fine, citing multiple grounds.
According to earlier report published by Nairametrics, NBC admitted before the Tribunal that the FCCPC obtained evidence from the company confirming that the mislabeling of the zero-sugar variant of Limca Lime-Lemon resulted from a production error at one of its eight factories specifically, the Abuja plant.
In its amended appeal, NBC stated that “the mislabeling was accidental, not deliberate.”
NBC, which holds the Coca-Cola bottling franchise, also disputed the FCCPC’s claims that Coca-Cola Nigeria Ltd (CNL) and NBC used misleading trade descriptions and unfair marketing tactics in labeling their Coke products, including the “Original Taste” and “Less Sugar” variants.
NBC’s legal team, led by Oluseye Opasanya (SAN), in appeal number CCPT/APP/6/2024 dated September 5, 2024, argued that the Commission’s findings were baseless and beyond its statutory powers.
Opasanya contended that to prove deliberate intent, the FCCPC should have obtained evidence from the company’s remaining seven factories—Maiduguri, Asejire, Ikeja, Owerri, Challawa, Port Harcourt, and Benin—to determine whether the same mislabeling occurred elsewhere.
In response, FCCPC counsel Abimbola Ojenike urged the Tribunal to affirm that the Commission has the statutory authority to issue and enforce orders for corporate or consumer contraventions.
Ojenike maintained that evidence presented during the investigation indicated that Coca-Cola and NBC violated Sections 17(2), 116, 123(1)(a–c), and 124(1)(a) of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA).
He asked the Tribunal to dismiss NBC’s appeal for lack of merit and uphold the FCCPC’s orders.
During Monday’s judgment proceedings, NBC’s counsel, O. Ogunride, informed the court that a settlement had been reached with the FCCPC.
He stated, “We are pleased to inform the Tribunal that the parties have agreed to terms of settlement, and we urge the court to adopt the settlement as its consent judgment.”
Ojenike confirmed that NBC’s legal team informed him on April 23, 2025, of the settlement. He disclosed that the FCCPC’s Legal Director, Akoji Achimugu, had indeed reached a settlement with the appellant.
However, in its ruling, the Tribunal stated that NBC’s filing terms of settlement after judgment had been reserved, and after parties had adopted their final written addresses, amounted to an attempt to arrest judgment—an action not recognized in Nigerian law.
“The notion of arrest of judgment is unknown to Nigerian law,” the Tribunal ruled.
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