The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has slammed a fine of N5 million on Channels Television for breaking the broadcasting law in an interview programme with Labour Party Vice Presidential candidate, Dr Datti Baba-Ahmed.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that a letter to that effected was addressed to the Chief Executive Officer of the television station and dated 27th March . The letter entitled, “Broadcast of an Inciting Interview, A Sanction”, was signed by the commission’s Director-General, Balarabe Ilelah.
It read in part: “The NBC monitored the broadcast of a live interview of the running mate of the Labour Party Vice Presidential Candidate, Dr. Datti Baba-Ahmed, by the anchor of Politics Today, Seun Okibaloye, on Wednesday, 22nd March.
“Dr Baba-Ahmed said it will be unconstitutional to swear in an elected president on 29th May 2023 because of election irregularities”.
NBC described the statement by Baba-Ahmed as “volatile and capable of inciting public disorder” and therefore violated some sections of the broadcasting code.
This, according to the commission, includes the section that said “no broadcast shall encourage, or incite, be repugnant to public feelings or contain an offensive reference to any person or organisation, alive or dead, or generally be disrespectful to human dignity”.
Ilelah added that, according to the broadcasting code, broadcasters shall ensure that no programme contained anything which amounted to a subversion of constituted authority.
He recalled that NBC had engaged Channels Television several times to consider the public interest before any programme was broadcast.
This, he said, was to ensure that the country was not plunged into anarchy.
“Consequently, on the following infractions, Channels Television is hereby sanctioned and shall pay a penalty of N5,000,000 (five million naira) only in the first instance”, he said.
He added that any further infraction by the television station would attract higher sanctions.
“You are advised to pay within two weeks from the day of receipt of this letter or the penalty will be graduated”, the NBC DG further said.
Only on Friday, the presidential campaign council of the All Progressives Congress (APC) petitioned NBC praying that it sanction Channels Television for what it described as “breaching the Nigerian Broadcasting Code during an interview with the Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Datti Baba-Ahmed”.
The petition, signed by the council’s Director of Media and Publicity, Mr Bayo Onanuga was dated 30th March 2023.
“In line with Section 14.0.1 of the Nigerian Broadcasting Code 6th edition stating the duty of the commission to accept complaints from aggrieved persons, bodies or members of the public and investigate as well as apply sanctions where necessary, the APC PCC hereby petitions the commission on breaches by Channels TV on its programme Politics Today last week”.
The campaign council accused the politician of making several comments that attacked the integrity of the 25th February 2023 presidential elections.
In the interview, Baba-Ahmed faulted the emergence of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the president-elect and requested the Chief Justice of Nigeria and President Muhammadu Buhari not to swear him in.
The APC PCC also noted that the host of the show should have cautioned the Baba-Ahmed for making such careless comments, and for allegedly failing to do so, the station should be sanctioned.
The petition partly reads: “The guest on the programme in question, Datti Baba-Ahmed said President Muhammadu Buhari should not swear in the President-elect because he did not score 25 percent of the votes in the FCT, being one of the prerequisites for being declared the winner. This is a subversive comment since the matter is among the issues submitted in their petition before the tribunal for adjudication. Therefore, until the court rules otherwise, the status quo is the INEC position as declared in the final results.
“The guest, Datti Baba-Ahmed’s comments about LP winning the presidential vote undermine constituted authority given to INEC in the 1999 Constitution as the body vested with the powers to conduct and announce national general elections results in Nigeria. Any figures aside, this will have to be certified by a tribunal as the authentic one.
“Therefore, Mr Datti’s statements that the INEC certificate of return issued to Tinubu is a ‘dud cheque’ and is null and void is not only divisive and subversive but also inciting and inflammatory”.
The petition cited the NBC code that in Section 3.8.1(b) stated that ‘a broadcaster shall ensure that no programme contains anything which amounts to subversion of constituted authority or compromises the unity or corporate existence of the nation as a sovereign state’.
The petition also pointed out that Baba-Ahmed’s comment later on the same programme that if ‘President Buhari should hand over to the President-elect by 29th May, that would be the end of democracy’, is another case of unguarded statement and breach of Section 5.3.3(b), which states that ‘a broadcaster shall avoid divisive and inflammatory matters in its provocative form in using political material’.
“Furthermore, Section 3.0.2.1 said that no broadcaster shall encourage or incite crime, lead to public hate, disorder or repugnant to public feelings’ materials that cause disaffection.
“We, therefore, urge NBC to invoke the necessary sanctions on Channels Television for the breaches enumerated above”, the APC PCC further demanded.
