Tinubu’s petition: NBC slams N5m fine on ChannelsTV for ‘breaking broadcast code’ during Datti interview

Barely 24 hours after the petition filed by President-elect, Bola Tinubu, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has slammed a fine of N5 million on Channels Television for breaking the broadcasting law during an interview with Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Dr Datti Yusuf Baba-Ahmed.

Tinubu had, Thursday, March 30, petitioned the NBC, asking the commission to sanction Channels Television for allegedly breaching the Nigerian Broadcasting Code during an interview with Datti Baba-Ahmed.

Datti had during the aired no-holds bared interview on Channels among other things called on President Muhammadu Buhari not to hand over to the President-elect until the determination of the suit challenging the latter’s declaration by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as president-elect.

A letter containing the fine addressed to the Chief Executive Officer of the Channels Television and dated March 27 but made public, Friday in Abuja, titled: “Broadcast of an Inciting Interview, A Sanction”, was signed by the NBC Director-General, Balarabe Ilelah.

“The NBC monitored the broadcast of a live interview of the running mate of the Labour Party Vice presidential candidate, Dr Datti Baba-Ahmed, by the anchor of Politics Today, Seun Okibaloye, on Wednesday, March 22.

“Dr Baba-Ahmed said it will be unconstitutional to swear in an elected president on May 29, 2023, because of election irregularities.

“Consequently, on the following infractions, Channels Television is hereby sanctioned and shall pay a penalty of N5,000,000 (five million naira) only in the first instance,” he said.

He added that any further infraction by the television station would attract higher sanctions.

“You are advised to pay within two weeks from the day of receipt of this letter or the penalty will be graduated,” the NBC Director-General said in the letter.

He noted that the broadcast was volatile and capable of inciting public disorder and therefore violated some sections of the broadcasting code.

This, according to him, includes the section that said no broadcast shall encourage, or incite, be repugnant to public feelings or contain offensive reference to any person or organisation, alive or dead or generally be disrespectful to human dignity.

Ilelah added that according to the broadcasting code, broadcasters shall ensure that no programme contained anything which amounted to subversion of constituted authority.

He recalled that the NBC had engaged Channels Television severally to consider public interest before any programme is broadcast.

This, he said, was to ensure that the country was not plunged into anarchy.

It would be recalled that in his petition, Tinubu said the host of the show should have cautioned the Labour party candidate for making such unguarded comments and that for failing to do so, the station should be sanctioned.

In the petition dated March 30, 2023 and signed by the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council Director of Media and Publicity, Bayo Onanuga, the president-elect had said:

“In line with Section 14.0.1 of the Nigerian Broadcasting Code 6th edition stating the duty of the National Broadcasting Commission to accept complaints from aggrieved persons, bodies or members of the public and investigate as well as apply sanctions where necessary, the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council hereby petitions the Commission on what it considers breaches by CHANNELS TV last week on its programme ‘Politics Today’ which airs daily at 7pm on weekdays”,

The former Lagos State governor accused Baba-Ahmed of making several comments attacking the integrity of the 25 February 2023 Presidential elections. In the interview, Datti faulted the emergence of Tinubu as the President-elect and categorically asked President Buhari and the Chief Justice of Nigeria not to swear him in.

In his petition, Tinubu said the host of the show should have cautioned the Labour party candidate for making such unguarded comments and that for failing to do so, the station should be sanctioned.

Tinubu’s petition read in part:

“He (Datti) said the Labour Party won the elections. This is a fallacy and not correct. According to the Code, a Broadcaster is liable when his guest is allowed to make a wild statement that is inaccurate and not based on fact. The only factual figures empirically collated as the final result is the one released by the Independent National Electoral Commission which placed Labour party as third.

The guest on the programme in question Datti Baba -Ahmed said the President of the country Muhammadu Buhari should not swear in the President-elect because he did not score 25% vote in the FCT, being one of the prerequisites for being declared winner. This is a subversive statement since the matter is before the tribunal and is among the issues submitted in their petition to the courts for adjudication. Therefore until and unless the court rules otherwise, the status quo is the INEC position as declared in the final results.

The guest Datti Baba Ahmed’s comments about Labour Party winning the presidential vote undermines constituted authority given to INEC in the 1999 Constitution as the body vested with the powers to conduct and announce the results of national general elections in Nigeria. Any other figures will have to be certified by the tribunal as the authentic one.

Therefore Mr Datti’s comments that the INEC certificate of return issued to the President-elect is a “dud cheque” and is null and void is not only divisive, subversive but also inciting and inflammatory.

The Code states in Section 3.8.1(b) that ‘A Broadcaster shall ensure that no programme contains anything which amounts to subversion of constituted authority or compromises the unity or corporate existence of Nigeria as a Sovereign state’.

The statement by Mr Datti Baba-Ahmed later on the same programme that if ‘President Buhari should hand over to the President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu by May 29, that would be the end of democracy’ is another case of unguarded utterance.

This is in breach of Section 5.3.3(b) which states that – ‘A Broadcaster shall avoid inflammatory and divisive matters in its provocative form in using political material’.

Furthermore, Section 3.0.2.1 states that- ‘No Broadcaster shall encourage or incite to crime, lead to public disorder or hate, or repugnant to public feelings’ materials that cause disaffection.

By denying the authenticity of the INEC Presidential election results Mr Datti is at liberty to seek for the voiding of the results, but until the court or tribunal upturns those results they remain the authentic results. Channels TV cannot encourage him to use its platform to create anarchy by disputing results on air without corroborating his facts.

In asking the President not to swear in the President-elect he is subverting the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC’s constitutionally guaranteed authority.

In using words like ‘handing over to the President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu will be the end of democracy’ he is not only promoting a threat but instigating a call to rebellion against the state. This is antithetical to the use of the media for social harmony and peaceful

It is our considered opinion that the guest Datti Baba-Ahmed was not only provocative but also inciting the public and the Labour Party followers to delegitimise the outcome of the elections but also propagate resistance against the incoming dully elected administration. of Bola Ahmed-Tinubu and Kashim Shettima.

We therefore urge the Commission to invoke the necessary sanctions on Channels TV for the breaches enumerated above”.