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The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has sanctioned 45 broadcast stations across the country over alleged ethical infractions during the general election.
Speaking at a news conference in Abuja on Friday, Is’haq Kawu, Director-General of the commission, said the affected media houses were fined N500,000 each for flouting the provisions of the Nigerian broadcasting code.
Channels Television, TVC, AIT and NTA are among the sanctioned stations.
Kawu warned that any station that continues to broadcast hate and inciting comments that threaten the security of the country would be shut down.
“Despite our various interventions, at the end of the presidential election which was held on 23 February 2019, 45 stations were found culpable of infractions on the provision of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code and have been sanction accordingly,” he said.
“We gave them the highest level of sanction under the NBC which is to make them to pay N500,000 each and the cut across the entire country.
“NBC also sanctioned stations that allowed politicians to utter abusive, inciting and provocative statements during rallies.
“And this happened on several radio and television stations, particularly and unfortunately on the big national networks such as NTA, AIT, Channels, and TVC News.
“There are also several radio and TV stations involved in this various infractions.
“Only recently, J FM for instance in Jos, Plateau State, was sanctioned over an inciting broadcast by a preacher who moved away from religion to the arena of politics and was making particularly inciting comments.”
Kawu maintained that the NBC had set up a national team to monitor stations round the clock as the the governorship elections approach.