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Mixed Reactions Trail NBC’s Sanction On Three TV Stations

Reactions have continued to trail the sanction imposed on three television stations in the country by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) over an alleged violation of operational code.
The affected television stations are the African Independent Television (AIT), Channels and Arise.
The NBC’s Acting Director-General, Armstrong Idachaba, had said the three stations violated Nigeria’s broadcast code over the use of unverifiable online video footages on social media.
The television stations were accused of airing what the regulatory body called unverified images of the alleged shooting on peaceful #EndSARS protests at Lekki toll gate in Lagos State, recently.
The affected media houses are expected to pay N3,000,000 each for the alleged violation of operational code.
But the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has faulted the NBC sanction, describing it as “illegal “.
SERAP, which reacted via its Twitter handle, threatened to sue the NBC if the sanctions were not rescinded.
The rights group also said that the action taken by the NBC was yet another example of Nigerian authorities’ push to silence independent media and voices of the people of Nigeria.
Also condemning the NBC sanction, a social media commentator, Comrade Obinna Amadi, said the action of the NBC was wrong going by the trend of international media standard.
Amadi said that if the commission succeeds in its action, it would be tantamount to censorship which, according to him, was not in line with the 21st century media practice.
However, a Port Harcourt based lawyer, Mr Gift Nyeche, while exchanging views with journalists on the development, on Monday, supported the NBC sanction on the three TV stations.
He said that the operations of TV stations and others must be regulated by appropriate regulatory bodies.
According to him, without regulations, the broadcasting stations may overshoot their code of operations and turn things upside down in the country.
The lawyer argued that sanction was not a death sentence but a mere warning that must be obeyed.
“The sanction of the AIT, Channels and Arise TV stations is not a taboo. The issue is that, people hate discipline, that is why whenever it comes, there would be a loud cry”, he said.
Nyeche said that the NBC sanction was in order and the fine should be paid, adding that any failure by the erring stations to comply with the sanction should attract further steps by the commission so as to serve as deterrent to others.