The N9 million fine imposed on Channels Television, AIT, and Arise TV by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has become a subject of litigation as the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), 261 concerned Nigerians, civil society, and media groups have sued the commission.
NBC had fined the stations N3 million each over “unprofessional coverage” of the #EndSARS protests.
However, the plaintiffs in a suit FHC/ABJ/CS/1436/2020 filed last Friday at the Federal High Court, Abuja, are praying the court to “declare arbitrary, illegal, and unconstitutional the N9million fines imposed on Channels TV, AIT and Arise TV (N3million each) over their coverage of the #EndSARS protests, and to stop the NBC from collecting the money.”
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Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed and Acting Director-General of NBC, Prof. Armstrong Idachaba were joined as co-defendants.
The co-plaintiffs in the suit are 255 concerned Nigerians, Premium Times Services Limited, Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development, HEDA Resource Centre, International Centre for Investigative Reporting, African Centre for Media and Information Literacy and Media Rights Agenda.
The plaintiffs filed the suit through their lawyers Kolawole Oluwadare, Adelanke Aremo and Opeyemi Owolabi.
In the suit, the plaintiffs are seeking an order setting aside the fines and any other penal sanction unilaterally imposed by NBC and Minister of Information on Channels, AIT and Arise TV, and on any other radio/television stations simply for carrying out their professional and constitutional duties.
According to the plaintiffs, “Section (2)(n) of the NBC Act and broadcasting code are oppressive, and clearly inconsistent with the Nigerian Constitution and the country’s international obligations.”
The plaintiffs noted that the defendants have on several occasions used broadcasting codes to suppress the watchdog roles of independent media and to violate Nigerians’ human rights, including the rights to freedom of expression, to disseminate and receive information, and hold their government and public officials to account.
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“The action by NBC and Mr. Lai Mohammed is arbitrary, illegal and unconstitutional, as it is contrary to section 39 of the Nigerian Constitution, Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Nigeria has ratified. Their action is apparently aimed to clampdown on media freedom and Nigerians’ human rights,” they said.
They further argued that “if the NBC and Mr Lai Mohammed are allowed to continue to use these oppressive provisions against independent media in the guise of performing their statutory duties, the end result will be authoritarianism and denial of freedom and liberty.”
The plaintiffs are equally seeking “an order setting aside the fine of N5 million and any other penal sanction unilaterally imposed by the NBC and Mr. Mohammed on Nigeria Info 99.3 FM Lagos, simply for carrying out its professional and constitutional duties.”
They argued that “a fine is a criminal sanction and only the court is empowered by the constitution to impose it. Fine imposed by regulatory agencies like NBC without recourse to the courts is illegal, unconstitutional and offends the sacred principles of natural justice and fairness.”
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