TELL Magazine

The National Broadcasting Commission, NBC has applied the big stick on Daar Communications Ltd, parent company of Africa Independent Television, AIT and RAYPOWER and other electronic media houses in Nigeria for alleged violation of broadcasting code and failure to pay renewal fee for their licences. The other media houses include 21 state broadcasting corporations and some highbrow radio stations, which include Rhythm FM, Classic FM and Murhi International, which owns the MITV.

Malam Balarabe Shehu Ilela, director general of the NBC who announced the suspension of the licences in Abuja said the companies concerned have 30 days to pay up the outstanding levies or risk losing their licences and frequencies, which could then be allocated to other persons or entities who are prepared to abide by the stipulated regulations. According to him, the step was taken after the affected outfits had failed to heed the warning by the Commission, as published in the newspapers last May, asking them to comply with the conditions of the regulator within two weeks. He said five months after the debtor stations remained adamant hence the announcement of the suspension.

Daar Communications is not new to this step by NBC. In June 2019 its stations were shut down for about one month over the delay in payment of renewal fee and what the Commission described as violation of broadcasting code, following an alleged complaint by the audience. The company went to court and the matter was resolved with an agreement approved by the court. This time, Daar Communications is in a large group of stations said to have failed to meet the financial obligation.

The affected state broadcasting corporations are Anambra, Bayelsa, Borno, Cross River State, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Rivers, Sokoto and Yobe.

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