The PCC charged both tv channels with violating the broadcasting code in a letter addressed to the Director-General of NBC, Balarabe Shehu Ilelah, and endorsed by Mr. Dele Alake, the PCC’s Special Adviser for Media, Communications, and Public Affairs. The Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council’s Director of Media and Publicity, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, acknowledged the situation in a statement issued on Monday.
The National Broadcasting Commission NBC has received a complaint from the All Progressives Congress APC’s Presidential Campaign Council PCC asking it to place penalties on several tv channels for what it called their false reportage on APC candidate for president Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The incident in issue, that did not result in an indictment of our nominee, has been overshadowed by what transpired during the interview and by communications between the US government and Tafa Balogun, who was the IGP at the time. The US Justice Department authorized our applicant in a letter dated February 4, 2003, sent by the US Embassy’s Lagos Consulate. Michael Bonner, the legal attaché for the consulate, has signed the letter.
Alake pointed out in the appeal that the alleged indictment over Tinubu that was published and debated on these stations had been dropped in a communication between the United States govt and the then-inspector general of police, Tafa Balogun. The PCC claimed that the NBC code had been broken by continuing to broadcast an unfounded indictment.
The Campaign Council was thus taken aback when some media outlets decided to transfer and broadcast stories that appeared to indict our applicant, in violation of Section 33 I of the Code, which states that the Broadcaster shall ensure that every information provided in a programme in whatever version is accurate.
The Broadcaster shall deliver news in a truthful, accurate, and fair manner without (a) Distortion, Exaggeration, or Misrepresentation, according to Section 5.1.2. In addition, Section 5.1.3 says that “Fake News is Prohibited.” It has been established that the bogus INEC letter is a hoax, and this breach amounts to misinformation.
According to the complaint, we think that the station owners ought to have access to study platforms because of their position as experts in order to confirm material before disseminating it to the general audience. The PCC furthermore charged that in their interview with Festus Keyamo, SAN, and the spokesperson for the opposing PDP, separately, both stations had used the already-cleared document.
Despite airing the lie, these stations continued to transmit and spread a phony letter that implied the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had started an inquiry against the APC presidential candidate based on the circulated fake letter.
The APC Presidential Campaign Council detailed additional offenses against all these stations, which it claimed were notorious for publishing fabricated stories regarding Tinubu. The NBC was tasked by the PCC to impose the proper penalties on these television stations.
These stations’ broadcasts over the past week have demonized and denigrated our presidential candidate as an unrepentant criminal and lawbreaker in the US court case.
The Broadcasting company shall not transfer any program, program promotion, community service announcement, or station identity which is likely in any circumstance to provoke or perpetuate in a reasonable person intense dislike, serious contempt, or severe ridicule against a person or groups of people, according to Section 3.1.2 of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code.
The Code reads in Chapter One, Section 1.1 (h) The Power to Create and Spread information the Code is Taken from the Provisions of Section 2 (1) (h) of the NBC Act, which is its Enabling Law,” for the Effect of Reference of Powers to Sanction Erring Broadcasters.
Alake wrote in the petition, We therefore seek the National Broadcasting Commission to sanction the guilty Stations in the interest of justice and in preservation of our participant’s rights in addition to prevent future reoccurrence.
