Chief Raymond Dokpesi, the founding chairman of DAAR Communications Plc, which houses media organizations such as AIT (Africa Independent Television) and Rawpower FM, has accused the federal government and National Broadcasting Commission of deliberately attacking his organizations without any justifiable reason.
Dokpesi complained that employees in the two organizations are consistently being scrutinized unfairly.
The chairman further stated that there are reports that media officers working in the organizations are now being tailed once they leave work, causing many of them to feel unsafe.
Dokpesi stated that apart from the infringement on privacy being experienced, the Federal Capital Development Agency had demolished the fence of DAAR headquarters in Abuja.
Expressing his dissatisfaction to newsmen in the FCT, Dokpesi stated, “I believe very strongly that under the leadership of the current Director General of the NBC (Is’haq Kawu), press freedom has been greatly eroded. If this was not protected by the President at the top, is it possible that his body language is being interpreted?
“I have it on strict authority and very assured information that the highest echelons of government, the Presidency, queried and challenged the NBC that they were not doing their jobs: ‘How on earth could they be hearing and seeing on AIT what they termed hate speech?’
“Any criticism of this government is hate speech. The NBC is acting under the authority of the President and Commander-in-Chief.”
He further commented that his condemnation of NBC’s acts was not borne out of any selfish desire, rather he was also speaking for other private media organizations who may have or may be facing such continuous threats.
He continued, “The licensing fees in Nigeria is one of the highest in the world. There is no country in the world where you have this type of exploitative fees. I have appealed for a reduction because the payments cannot be sustained by private broadcasters in Nigeria.
“This economy has plummeted. This government has called this organization unprintable names which have deterred several advertisers from patronizing AIT.
“I sought an audience with the NBC DG. I called, sent letters and sent text messages to him, but he refused. In spite of the fact that we have to run generators 24-hours of the day, I remain committed to keeping the spirit of broadcasting alive.”
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