Following a protracted faceoff between Daar Communications and broadcast regulators, Nigeria Broadcasting Commission, the NBC ,Thursday, suspended the latter’s license.
In a statement read to journalist in Abuja, the commission says “the shutdown is till further notice”.
The statement says “Following monitoring reports and complaints from concerned Nigerians about the broadcast contents of Daar Communications Plc’s AIT/Raypower broadcast stations, the NBC have over the last 2 years summoned on several occasions management of the company to address issues regarding the operations of AIT/Raypower with the company, particularly, Political Platform and Kakaaki aired on AIT”.
It says the commission in various meetings had “expressed its disappointment with the way and manner Hate Speech, divisive and inciting comments are applied in discussion of national issues in breach of the provisions of the NBC Act and Broadcast Code”.
It also complained about the lack of caution exercised by the station in its use of feedback from social media.
” The need to exercise caution in the use of user generated content from the social media knowing how volatile and misleading the social media has become. The management of Daar Communication Plc thereafter took to the social media to display our official correspondences.
“Nigeria is cursed, we declare independent state of Niger Delta”, “Nigeria irritates me”, “this country is gradually Islamizing” and other similar slogans are used without editorial control in breach of the broadcast Code”.
The straw that may have broken the camel’s back is the latest of the faceoffs.
“We also observed from monitoring reports that a documentary on the Presidential Election Tribunal, a pending election petition matter aired on AIT on Wednesday and Thursday, 22nd and 23rd May, 2019 without regard to the provisions of the Broadcast Code. The Commission, in line with its regulatory powers again cautioned AIT in another letter also dated 27th May, 2019”.
NBC says Daar communications disregarded, their letters of notification of breach which it went on to display on its social media handles . The commission described the broadcast medium as “a bad example of how a professional broadcast outfit should not be run”.
The NBC also accused the stations of being partisan in their broad cast and not paying broadcast dues when due.
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