Two rights groups have asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to render void the N3 million fine the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) slapped on each of the three television stations over their coverage of the #EndSARS protests.
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) co-filed the first suit alongside 261 concerned Nigerians, civil society and media groups, while the Digital Rights Lawyers Initiative filed the other.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed and the acting Director-General of the NBC, Prof. Armstrong Idachaba were joined as defendants in SERAP’s suit.
The applicants prayed the court to declare that the N3 million fine imposed by NBC on each of Channels TV, Africa Independent Television (AIT) and Arise TV over their coverage of the #EndSARS protests was “arbitrary, illegal and unconstitutional”.
“The NBC, being a regulatory body, is not empowered by law to act as the prosecutor and the judge; all at the same time. We humbly urge the court to set aside the unlawful and unconstitutional fines imposed on independent media houses, and to uphold the sanctity of the Nigerian Constitution, Nigerians’ human rights, media freedom, and the rule of law,” SERAP said.
In the same vein, DRLI, in the suit filed by its lawyers, Messrs Solomon Okedara and Olumide Babalola, contended that “the sanction and fine imposed on the television stations creates a chilling effect on freedom of expression and constitutes an unjustifiable interference of its members’ right to freedom of expression particularly, their right to receive ideas and information from the sanctioned television stations.”
It further prayed the court to make a declaration that the NBC, “not being a judicial body lacks the power to impose fines on any broadcaster, including fines imposed on ARISE TV, CHANNELS TV and AIT and the imposition of such fines is null and void.”
