NBC officially withdraws suspension notice on AIT, Ray Power, as broadcasting stations owe NBC N4b

The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has officially withdrawn the suspension notice issued to DAAR Communications Plc for violating the National Broadcasting Code and urged the company to take necessary steps to abide by the terms of settlement entered as judgment of the court.

Meanwhile, broadcasting stations in the country still owe the commission over N4 billion debt. Briefing journalists yesterday in Abuja, Director General of the commission, Moddibo Kawu said that NBC and DAAR agreed that DAAR Communications would furnish the NBC with a concrete and realistic proposal for the payment of its outstanding license renewal fee for the National Network Broadcast License (Radio/TV), that it takes the necessary internal steps to ensure balance in its news coverage, especially political commentary.

According to him, other terms of settlement include that DAAR shall take full editorial responsibility of the use of content sourced from social media and all/ any other outlets and that DAAR must ensure that all programs transmitted on its TV/Radio stations across the country comply with the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the National Broadcasting Commission Act, laws of the Federation and the Nigeria Broadcasting Code as may be in force or/ and as amended from time to time.

Kawu explained that the court accepted these terms as basis of the consent judgment and the Judge ruled accordingly. The NBC boss who noted that the duty of regulating broadcasting within the Nigerian socio-Political environment is a very challenging task, said that about four hundred and forty infractions were recorded in the first Quarter of 2019 stressing that within the period, 62 infractions were on the use of obscene materials; 203 were on hate speech and politics-related infractions; 55 for lack of professionalism; 54 for unverifiable claims; 17 were for technical breaches and 255 breaches were over advertisements.

Kawu lamented that licensees often ignore the terms of their licenses and over the years, have accumulated debts totaling over four billion Naira owed to the NBC, which they don’t expect to be reminded to pay or want to ever pay, as they also assume that the NBC dares not wield its regulatory powers. The DG stated that the sixth edition of the NBC code will be officially launched in Kano on Thursday, July 4th, 2019‬ adding that the new code overs recommendations on hate and dangerous speech, the Nigerian sports industry and Nigerian productions must be done in Nigeria.