News
Appeal Court Knocks Out NBC’s Bid To Revive Broadcast Fines
The Court of Appeal in Abuja has struck out the National Broadcasting Commission’s (NBC) latest attempt to overturn a Federal High Court judgment restraining it from imposing fines on radio and television stations, handing the broadcast regulator another significant judicial defeat.
In a unanimous judgment delivered on Wednesday, the appellate court ruled that the NBC’s appeal was fundamentally defective and incompetent, holding that it lacked the legal foundation required for the court to exercise jurisdiction.
Justice Jane Inyang, who delivered the lead judgment, identified a fatal discrepancy in the identity of the appellant. While the original suit at the Federal High Court was between the Incorporated Trustees of Media Rights Agenda and the National Broadcasting Commission, the notice of appeal was filed in the name of the “Nigerian Broadcasting Commission” – an entirely different legal entity.
According to the court, the inconsistency rendered the appeal incurably defective.
“The notice of appeal and the accompanying briefs are fundamentally defective and do not and cannot confer jurisdiction on this court to hear and determine the appeal,” Justice Inyang ruled.
The court stressed that a valid notice of appeal is the bedrock of appellate proceedings and a mandatory condition for invoking its jurisdiction. It consequently held that there was “no appeal in fact and in law” before it and struck out the case for incompetence.
The appeal arose from the January 17, 2024 judgment of Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia of the Federal High Court, who held that the NBC acted unlawfully and unconstitutionally by imposing N5 million fines on MultiChoice Nigeria Limited (DStv), TelCom Satellite Limited (TStv), Trust TV Network Limited and NTA StarTimes Limited over documentaries on banditry and insecurity in Zamfara State.
The commission had argued that the broadcasts threatened national security, but the trial court ruled that the sanctions violated the constitutional guarantee of freedom of expression under Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which protects the right to receive and disseminate information without undue interference.
Wednesday’s verdict marks yet another courtroom setback for the NBC in its prolonged legal battle over its sanctioning powers.
In April 2026, the Court of Appeal also dismissed another appeal filed by the commission against the May 10, 2023 judgment of Justice James Omotosho, which held that monetary fines are criminal sanctions that can only be imposed by a court of law and not by an administrative agency. The appellate court had earlier rejected the NBC’s attempt to set aside that judgment in November 2023.
The latest decision further entrenches judicial limits on the NBC’s authority, reinforcing the position that broadcast organisations cannot be subjected to monetary penalties by the regulator without due judicial process.
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nentawe Yilwatda, says more than 10 million vulnerable Nigerians who benefited from the N75,000 conditional cash transfer programme do not have access to mobile phones or social media.
Yilwatda disclosed this on Saturday while speaking with journalists after a three-day retreat of the APC National Executive Council in Maiduguri, Borno State.
The beneficiaries, whom he described as poor and vulnerable Nigerians, were largely unable to participate in public discussions about government policies because they lacked access to phones, television and social media.
“We have given 75,000 naira to over 10 million Nigerians across the country using the conditional cash transfer under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction.
“Mind you, these people who are poor and vulnerable don’t have telephones to make calls; they are not on social media. They don’t have a television. They cannot come and challenge and discuss as we are doing here, but they are out there,” he said.
Yilwatda also criticised former Vice President and African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, over his position on the fuel subsidy.
“We are constructing roads and paying people that are working on the road site, and construction is going across the country,” he said.
“Over 30 states could not pay salaries and pensions. After we removed subsidies, all states can pay salaries and pensions, and no state is left behind.
“Today, if you return it, you are saying states shouldn’t pay salaries again. And what suffering are you bringing to Nigeria?”
The APC chairman also argued that a return to fuel subsidy would affect the government’s student loan scheme and other projects.
“The projects we’re doing across the country, like the coastal road and gas project to the north, which have passed Abuja, which are aimed at easing the suffering of Nigerians, will be suspended,” he said.
Yilwatda further accused Atiku of seeking to reverse the gains of the Tinubu administration in pursuit of the presidency, saying the APC and Nigerians would not accept such a move.
The APC chairman said the NEC retreat also reviewed the party’s activities at the national, state, local government, ward and polling-unit levels.
According to him, the party concluded that it remained strong and prepared for the 2027 general elections.
He said the NEC passed a vote of confidence in President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima and other APC candidates who emerged from the party’s primaries for the 2027 elections.
Ivie Atuwatse III, wife of Ogiame Atuwatse III, the Olu of Warri, has opened up on the joys and challenges of being married to the traditional ruler, saying she takes pride in seeing people celebrate his achievements.
Ivie spoke in a recent interview with BBC News Pidgin, where she discussed life as the wife of the monarch and the demands that come with his position.
She said one of the things she enjoys most about the marriage is watching people appreciate her husband’s personality and achievements.
“The thing wey I like about being married to His Majesty is that, all the fame or the popularity wey him get, na say I get to see the world celebrate his genius, his swag also, cos me too I dey celebrate am,” she said.
“And when the world dey celebrate am, e dey ginger me more. I dey extremely proud of am as a human being, and to see that they also appreciate am dey give me much joy.”
However, Ivie admitted that the Olu’s responsibilities can sometimes make it difficult for her to have enough time with him.
“But on the other side, dem say food wey dey sweet sometimes flies dey like to chop from am,” she said.
“Sometimes e dey busy and it can be hard to want to share my husband with all the many different duties that he has, and so that can be equally difficult.”
She said they were learning to adjust to the demands of his position.
“And so, we are learning to navigate it because sometimes I just want him to myself,” she added.
The interviewer also asked whether she would accept another wife if the Olu changed his position on polygamy, having previously said he was not open to it.
Ivie dismissed the possibility, insisting that she was confident her husband would not change his mind.
“Firstly, His Majesty no go fit change him mind about polygamy. Make we just settle that one for there,” she said.
“Me alone, one me, I be like three women, so I dey alright for am.”
Old Trafford, Manchester United’s 74,000-capacity stadium, became a house of worship on Saturday as Nigerian pastor Jerry Eze led the NSPPD UK Prayer Conference, drawing believers from across Britain and beyond.
Hosted by Streams of Joy International, the conference brought together believers from across the United Kingdom and around the world for prayer, worship and fellowship.
Worshippers at the NSPPD UK Prayer Conference held at Old Trafford, Manchester, on Saturday. Photo: X / @AgborMoses34
Admission to the event was free, though attendees were encouraged to register in advance as places were limited.
Despite that, demand reportedly outstripped availability, with some social media users claiming the event was fully booked and turning to TikTok in the days leading up to the conference in search of spare tickets.
Worshippers during the NSPPD UK Prayer Conference at Old Trafford, Manchester, on Saturday. PHOTO: NSPPD/YouTube
Worshippers during the NSPPD UK Prayer Conference at Old Trafford, Manchester, on Saturday. PHOTO: NSPPD/YouTube
The gathering featured several well-known gospel ministers alongside Eze, including Sunmisola Agbebi, Mercy Chinwo, Dunsin Oyekan and Kaestrings.
Worshippers during the NSPPD UK Prayer Conference at Old Trafford, Manchester, on Saturday. PHOTO: NSPPD/YouTube
(Credit: Saturday PUNCH)
10m beneficiaries of cash transfers don’t have phones, not on social media – APC Chairman
‘I’m like three women’ — Ivie Atuwatse rules out polygamy for Olu of Warri
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