The National Broadcasting Commission has asked the Court of Appeal in Abuja for permission to file a fresh appeal against a Federal High Court judgment that barred it from imposing fines on broadcast stations.
The application comes after the Court of Appeal, on June 17, 2026, struck out the commission’s earlier appeal, describing it as incompetent because the agency was incorrectly identified in the court documents as the “Nigerian Broadcasting Commission” instead of its statutory name, the “National Broadcasting Commission.”
In a motion filed through its counsel, Dapo Akinosun (SAN), the NBC is seeking an extension of time to challenge the January 10, 2024 judgment delivered by Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia of the Federal High Court.
The suit was instituted by Media Rights Agenda following the commission’s decision to impose N5 million fines each on Multichoice Nigeria Limited, owners of DStv, TelCom Satellite Limited, Trust TV Network Limited and NTA StarTimes Limited over documentaries on banditry and insecurity in Zamfara State.
The NBC had argued that the broadcasts undermined national security.
Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia, however, ruled that the commission acted unlawfully and unconstitutionally by imposing the sanctions, holding that the NBC lacked the judicial authority to impose such penalties because it is not a court of law.
Seeking to revive its challenge, the commission argued that the case raises issues of significant public importance concerning its statutory responsibility to regulate broadcasting and enforce compliance with broadcasting standards.
According to the NBC, allowing the judgment to remain unchallenged “is capable of creating significant uncertainty regarding the commission’s regulatory powers and its ability to effectively discharge its statutory mandate.”
The commission further contended that weakening its enforcement powers could encourage non-compliance with broadcasting regulations and increase the dissemination of false, misleading and unverified information capable of causing public anxiety, panic and social unrest.
It also warned that inadequate regulatory oversight could embolden irresponsible broadcasting practices and facilitate the misuse of broadcast and digital media platforms to spread sensational or inflammatory content.
The NBC maintained that the proposed appeal raises substantial legal issues affecting not only the parties involved in the suit but also the broader regulation of Nigeria’s broadcasting industry, with implications for broadcasters, content creators and media audiences.
The commission stated that it had instructed its lawyers to appeal the Federal High Court judgment immediately after it was delivered and that the notice of appeal was filed within the period allowed by law. It attributed the failure of the earlier appeal to an inadvertent error by its counsel in misdescribing the commission’s statutory name.
The NBC is also asking the appellate court for leave to introduce a fresh issue challenging the legal capacity of Media Rights Agenda to institute and maintain the suit before the Federal High Court.
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the application.
