A Federal High Court in Lagos has restrained the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) from using the NBC Act and the Nigerian Broadcasting Code to impose fines or take punitive actions against broadcast stations and other independent media outlets in Nigeria.
In a landmark ruling delivered by Hon. Justice Nicholas Oweibo in June, the court declared that the NBC and its agents lack the legal authority to unilaterally impose penalties, including fines, suspension, or the withdrawal of licenses on media houses for airing content that promotes access to diverse information, especially on issues of public interest.
The judgment was made in response to a lawsuit filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID).
The certified true copy of the judgment was made available last Friday.
The case stemmed from the NBC’s decision in 2022 to impose fines of N5 million each on Trust TV, Multichoice Nigeria Limited, NTA-Startimes Limited, and Telcom Satellite Limited for airing documentaries on terrorism in Nigeria.
The NBC argued that these documentaries glorified banditry, undermined national security, and violated the Nigerian Broadcasting Code.
In his ruling, Justice Oweibo first addressed the issue of locus standi, determining that SERAP and CJID were well within their rights to bring the suit.
He noted that both organizations had sufficient interest in the case, as their mandates related directly to public interest and the protection of media freedom.
Justice Oweibo affirmed that under the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules 2009, the requirement of locus standi had been relaxed, allowing SERAP and CJID to sue on behalf of the public.
The judge dismissed objections raised by the NBC’s legal team, emphasizing that the case was fundamentally about the protection of the rights to freedom of expression, access to information, media freedom, and fair hearing, all of which are guaranteed by the Nigerian Constitution.
Justice Oweibo’s ruling, dated June 13, 2024, stated that the NBC’s actions violated the constitutional rights of SERAP and CJID, and by extension, the rights of Nigerian citizens to freely access information.
As a result, the court ruled in favor of SERAP and CJID, effectively halting the NBC’s attempts to impose fines and other sanctions on media houses.
This judgment is a significant victory for press freedom and the independence of the media in Nigeria, ensuring that broadcast stations are free from undue government interference in their reporting on matters of public importance.
