Court of Appeal Affirms Ruling Stripping NBC of Powers to Fine Broadcast Stations
The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has dismissed an appeal filed by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), seeking to overturn a judgement that barred it from imposing fines on broadcast stations.
In a unanimous decision, Justice Oyebiola Oyewumi, who delivered the lead judgement, upheld the earlier ruling of the Federal High Court, which nullified fines imposed on 45 radio and television stations in March 2019 over alleged breaches of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code.
The three-member panel, presided over by Justice Abba Mohammed and with Justice Donatus Okorowo as the third member, agreed that the appeal lacked merit and should be dismissed.
According to a statement by the Communications Officer of Media Rights Agenda (MRA), Idowu Adewale, the judgement stemmed from a suit filed by the organisation in November 2021 challenging the NBC’s authority to impose fines.
The lower court, in a judgement delivered on May 10, 2023, by Justice James Omotosho, had ruled in favour of MRA after the NBC failed to defend the suit. The court held that fines constitute criminal sanctions, which only courts of law are empowered to impose under Nigerian law.
Justice Omotosho further declared that the NBC, “is neither a court nor a judicial tribunal,” and that its actions violated the Constitution, setting aside the ₦500,000 fines imposed on each affected station.
An attempt by the NBC to set aside the judgement in July 2023 was dismissed in November 2023 by the same court, which described the application as an afterthought, noting that the Commission had been duly served but failed to appear.
The NBC subsequently filed an appeal in July 2024. At the hearing on February 4, 2026, its counsel, Victor Ogude (SAN), led arguments on behalf of the Commission, while MRA’s counsel, Ezenwa Anumnu, opposed the appeal.
In its ruling, the appellate court held that the NBC could not introduce fresh arguments at that stage, having failed to contest the case at the trial court.
The judgement marks a significant victory for MRA, which is also defending a second appeal by the NBC over a similar ruling delivered in January 2024 by Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia. That case, involving fines imposed in 2022 over broadcasts on banditry, is still pending before the appellate court, which has reserved judgement.