The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has pressed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to direct Mohammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation, and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), to withdraw with immediate effect the ‘Formal Notice’, which it described as “unlawful”, against Broadcast Stations and presenters.
The non-profit Organization said, the ‘Formal Notice’ “threatens sanctions against broadcast stations and presenters on vague and unjustified grounds, including the expression of ‘personal opinions,’ alleged ‘bullying or intimidation’ of guests, and failure to ‘maintain neutrality.’”
Via a statement, SERAP urged the President to direct the Information Minister alongside the NBC to “immediately” stay away “from imposing prior censorship on broadcast stations and Nigerian journalists including presenters and to allow them to freely carry out their constitutional responsibilities and exercise their fundamental human rights”.
The statement continues: “The request followed the notice issued to broadcasters by the NBC on 17 April 2026, alleging a rise in breaches of the 6th Edition of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code in ‘news, current affairs, and political programming’, and threatening that it would ‘enforce strict compliance and impose sanctions for Class B breaches.’”
The non-governmental body said, the Notice from the NBS stands as a “dangerous attempt to impose prior censorship on the media and suppress legitimate journalistic expression”.
It reminded the Commission, “the Nigerian Constitution and international human rights law protect both the absolute right to hold opinions and the qualified right to express ideas of all kinds. Journalistic opinion is protected expression.”
