International service providers have already submitted their bid to buy the company but mistrust among government officials and the company's board members has delayed the sale of the company, forcing Yar'Adua to intervene.

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) now says it has initiated a new program to conduct a fresh round of bidding for Nitel license and its GSM subsidiary, M-tel. The move will likely spark more international interest in the company, especially after the president's directive.

The NCC is the country's telecom sector regulator, which now wants to assure prospective investors that the new bidding process will be transparent and corruption-free.

Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (Transcorp) took over the management of the company in 2006. But this year, the Nigerian government, through the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE), revoked the company's 51 percent equity stake in Nitel, citing a breach of Share Sale Purchase Agreement (SSPA) by the company.

Transcorp had also failed to put together a plan for a technical operator for the company -- one of the conditions for the sale.