The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) sought to have an injunction preventing the agency from fining broadcast stations revoked, but the Federal High Court in Abuja refused the application on Thursday.
In a ruling on a challenge submitted by the Incorporated Trustees of Media Rights Agenda, Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja decided on May 10 that NBC was not authorised to impose penalties on broadcast stations.
Following NBC’s March 1, 2019, punishment of 45 broadcast stations for alleged “ethical infractions during the general election,” Media Rights Agenda filed that lawsuit.
The NBC also penalised the impacted media outlets N500,000.
However, Justice Omotosho overturned the fines, citing a violation of the media outlets’ constitutional right to a fair trial as guaranteed by Article 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act and Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The NBC attorney, Babatunde Ogala SAN, expressed dissatisfaction with the ruling and sought the court to throw aside its “default judgement,” arguing that the verdict was “reached without jurisdiction.”
The NBC counsel argued that he was not served with the case’s originating processes during the hearings leading up to the judgement.
Because the same case had been tried in a different court, he insisted, the judgement amounted to an abuse of the legal system.
Judge Omotosho rendered his decision on Thursday, stating that he had reviewed the court’s file and that the evidence unambiguously demonstrated that the NBC had received all proceedings in the case, including hearing notices, despite its attorney’s assertion that no notice was sent.
Justice Omotosho declared, “All this evidence clearly points to proper and effective service on the respondents (NBC), who refused to appear or enter appearance on the matter.”
Regarding the matter of misusing the legal system, Omotosho determined that the NBC was required to notify the court about the existence of a comparable lawsuit pending in a different court, but they neglected to do so.
He therefore decided that NBC’s attempt to have its judgement overturned was pointless.
The judge denied the application, stating, “The application by the respondents has no substance for being an afterthought.”
