NBC wants to appeal court ruling blocking fines on broadcasters

The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has asked the Court of Appeal in Abuja for permission to file a new appeal against a Federal High Court ruling that stopped it from fining broadcast stations.

This request was made in a statement on Monday by Idowu Adewale, the communications officer of Media Rights Agenda (MRA).

The statement says the commission filed a motion asking the appellate court to give it more time to challenge the lower court’s ruling after its previous appeal was thrown out for being improper.

This new application comes after the Court of Appeal’s decision on 17 June, which struck out the NBC’s earlier appeal. The court found that the notice of appeal was seriously flawed because it wrongly called the commission the “Nigerian Broadcasting Commission” instead of its correct name, the “National Broadcasting Commission.”

Idowu explained that the NBC, through its lawyer Dapo Akinosun, who is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), is seeking extra time to appeal the 10 January 2024 ruling made by Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia of the Federal High Court in Lagos.

This ruling resulted from a case brought by Media Rights Agenda against the NBC’s decision to impose N5 million fines on four broadcast platforms for airing documentaries on banditry and insecurity in Zamfara State.

Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia ruled that the fines imposed on Multichoice Nigeria Limited, which owns DStV; TelCom Satellite Limited (TSTV); Trust TV Network Limited; and NTA StarTimes Limited were illegal and unconstitutional. The judge stated that the NBC does not have the legal power to impose such fines because it is not a court of law.

Alongside seeking more time to appeal, the NBC is also asking the Court of Appeal for permission to raise a new issue questioning Media Rights Agenda’s right to bring the case to the Federal High Court.

In its application, the NBC argued that this case is of great public importance. It relates to its powers to regulate broadcasting and enforce the Nigeria Broadcasting Code.

The NBC warned that allowing the Federal High Court ruling to remain without review could cause confusion about its regulatory powers. It could also weaken the enforcement of broadcasting standards and allow the spread of false and dangerous content that could lead to public panic and unrest.

The commission also argued that a weaker regulatory system could lead to irresponsible broadcasting practices. This would harm the orderly regulation of Nigeria’s broadcasting industry, affecting broadcasters, content creators, media consumers, and the general public.

According to the application, the NBC initially filed its appeal within the legal timeframe after the January 2024 judgement. But the Court of Appeal struck it out after finding that the notice of appeal had wrongly described the appellant as the “Nigerian Broadcasting Commission” instead of its correct name, the “National Broadcasting Commission.”

The NBC said this mistake was an unintentional error by its lawyer and asked the appellate court not to let this slip stop it from challenging the ruling.

The Court of Appeal has not yet set a date for hearing this application.

Background

This latest application is a new turn in a legal battle that has defined the limits of the NBC’s powers to penalize broadcast stations.

The issue began when the NBC, on 1 March 2019, fined 45 broadcast stations N500,000 each for alleged violations of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code.

Media Rights Agenda challenged this action, claiming the NBC did not have the authority to impose such fines.

On 10 May 2023, another judge, James Omotosho, of the Federal High Court in Abuja sided with Media Rights Agenda. He cancelled the fines and issued a permanent order stopping the NBC from fining broadcasters.

The judge stated that fines are criminal penalties that only courts can impose and that the NBC, as an administrative body, does not have the constitutional power to do so.

The NBC’s effort to overturn that ruling at the Federal High Court also failed. In November 2023, Judge Omotosho dismissed its request to overturn the judgement, stating that the commission did not defend itself in the original case, even after being served with court documents.

Another issue arose when the NBC decided to fine Multichoice Nigeria Limited (DStV), TelCom Satellite Limited (TSTV), Trust TV Network Limited, and NTA StarTimes Limited N5 million each after they showed documentaries on banditry and insecurity in Zamfara State.

In a ruling on 10 January 2024, Ms Ofili-Ajumogobia stated that these fines were unlawful and unconstitutional. She said the NBC does not have the legal power to impose such fines because it is not a court of law.

She also mentioned that imposing these fines violated the constitutional right to freedom of expression, including the public’s right to receive information without interference.

So far, the NBC has not succeeded in its attempts to overturn both court rulings. In April this year, the Court of Appeal upheld Judge Omotosho’s ruling, rejecting the NBC’s appeal over the N500,000 fines on the 45 broadcast stations.

Just two months later, on 17 June, another court panel struck out the NBC’s appeal against Mrs Ofili-Ajumogobia’s ruling because the notice of appeal was fundamentally flawed. It identified the appellant as the “Nigerian Broadcasting Commission” instead of its correct name, the “National Broadcasting Commission.”

This recent decision led to the NBC’s latest request to the Court of Appeal for permission to file a new appeal against Mrs Ofili-Ajumogobia’s ruling.