As campaigns ahead of the 2023 general election are set to kick off, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has charged broadcast stations to be professional while giving coverage to political activities.
NBC also charged broadcast stations to give equal access to their facilities to all political parties and groups and desist from allowing politicians to use their medium to perpetrate hate speech and misinformation.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the other hand tasked sitting political office holders not to use the power of incumbency and deny other politicians, political parties, or groups access to using public facilities.
Speaking during a sensitisation forum on political broadcasting, with the theme ‘Towards a Fair and Responsible Broadcast Coverage of the 2023 General Elections’, the Director General of NBC, Mallam Balarabe Ilelah further charged broadcast stations on equity in airtime allocation and coverage of political parties’ activities particularly during prime times.
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He said broadcasters are also required to handle live political rallies with care and due professionalism.
“The commission enjoins broadcasters to give equal access and opportunities to all political players, registered political parties and candidates. This is in addition to ensuring equity in airtime allocation and coverage of political parties’ activities particularly during prime times. It is also the time for you to make money from political adverts and campaigns but ensure that this is done within the ambit of the law.
“Broadcasters are also required to handle live political rallies with care and due professionalism. This is in addition to studio-based live political interviews/broadcast. Because of the sensitivities of such programs, broadcasters are advised to install delay mechanism.
“Remember that broadcast stations are held responsible for any breach. The stations shall therefore, assume and accept editorial responsibility,” he stated.
Mallam Ilelah reminded broadcasters not to allow any form of hate speech, fake news, derogatory or divisive remarks and any incendiary broadcast on their platforms.
“Broadcaster is not allowed to deny any group access to airtime. Any form of denial of access is prohibited.
“However, if your political content is indecent and hateful, then a station is allowed to turn it down and give reasons why it cannot be taken.
The NBC DG further called on broadcasters to ensure that every partisan political broadcast is recorded off transmission and preserved for 150 days after broadcast.
“You are also required to stop the broadcast of any partisan political program, 24 hours to the polling day.
“On election days, the broadcaster is to relay election results or winners only as announced by the authorised electoral officer,” he added.
“I urge you to familiarise yourselves with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 which empowers the electoral umpire to prosecute presenters, principal officers, media house owners and the persons that contravene the electoral act and if found wanting, can be fined millions of naira or imprisoned or get both. In view of this, I implore you to thread with caution as the commission will ensure strict adherence to all extant laws.
The INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu said the broadcast media are critical partners to the commission.
He said while the commission will continue to deepen its focused engagement with stakeholders, the media play a critical role in ensuring a more effective public enlightenment on the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 in particular and other aspects of the electoral process in general.
“Section 95 Subsections 2,3,4,5 and 6 are unambiguous and worth quoting verbatim as follows: 95(2)“State apparatus including the media shall not be employed to the advantage or disadvantage of any political party or candidate at any election.”
“95(3) “Media time shall be allocated equally among the political parties and candidates at similar hours of the day.”
95(4)“At any public electronic media, equal airtime shall be allotted to all political parties or candidates during prime times at similar hours each day, subject to the payment of appropriate fees.”
“95(5) “At any public print media, equal coverage and visibility shall be allotted to all political parties.”
“Failure to comply with the provisions of the law attracts sanctions against both the media organisation and its principal officers as clearly provided for in Section 95(6) as follows: 95(6)“A person who contravenes subsections (3) and (4) commits an offence and is liable on conviction, in the case of –
(a) a public media, to a fine of N2,000,000 in the first instance andN5,000,000 for subsequent conviction,” he explained.