International Press Centre Order NBC To Reverse N5million Fine Imposed On Channels TV Over Datti-Ahmed’s Interview

The International Press Centre (IPC) has tackled the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC) for fining media organisation, Channels Television without giving the news platform the principle of the right to a fair hearing.

This was stated in a press statement released by the group executive director, Lanre Arogundade, saying that NBC’s sanction is targeted at undermining the credibility of press freedom in Nigeria.

On Channels TV’s Politics Today on March 22, Datti Baba-Ahmed, vice presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), had stated that there was no president-elect because Bola Tinubu allegedly did not meet the requirements of the constitution.

He had asked Nigeria’s Chief Justice, Olukayode Ariwoola, not to swear in Tinubu as President.

Channels TV was sanctioned by NBC for a “volatile broadcast capable of inciting public disorder and violating sections of the broadcasting code” in response to Datti’s statement.

Commenting on this, Lanre Arogundade, director of the International Press Centre (IPC) and Edetaen Ojo, director of Media Rights Agenda (MRA) accused NBC of acting unfairly and unjustly by basing its harsh decision solely on the claims of one side in a joint statement released on Tuesday.

The groups faulted NBC for acting as a judge on its own, an act which contradicts the principle of natural justice and the right to a fair trial against Channels TV.

The statement reads in part: “Assuming without conceding that Channels TV erred in the management of the said interview, it was still pertinent for the NBC to have heard their side of the story. In failing to do so, the NBC acted unfairly and unjustly as it based its heavy-handed decision on the claims of one side only.

“NBC has in this instance again exercised quasi-judicial powers injudiciously, by constituting itself to the prosecutor and the judge over a case brought before it by a third party. In previous instances, it has also additionally been the accuser.

“It must be stressed that Mr. Onanuga is not just anybody. He speaks for the incoming president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Ordinarily, this should have informed the need for the NBC to act more cautiously instead of exposing itself to the accusation that it has become the ruling government or ruling party’s willing tool to suppress press freedom.

“Even if, as the NBC claims, it acted based on its own observation, it was still imperative for it to allow Channels Television to respond to the allegations, especially since that made it the accuser, the prosecutor and the judge.

“We wish to reiterate that the fundamental principles that ought to guide the regulation of broadcasting and related activities are the ones that advance the public interest and are investment friendly both of which have been discarded in the handling of the petition.

“We urge the NBC to desist from walking this path, which undermines its credibility and independence and weakens the broadcast sector as a result. We call on the commission to immediately reverse the hastily imposed fine and give Channels TV the deserved opportunity to defend itself.”