A Lagos federal High Court presided by Justice A.L Allagoa will today deliver judgment against the Information Minister, Lai Mohammed and the National Broadcasting Commission, NBC, over a suit filed by a human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong.
The suit is on fundamental human rights against the commission alongside Mohammed and the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami.
According to Sahara Reporters, The suit is against the Nigerian government officials on the imposition on N5million fine on broadcast stations over alleged hate speech.
Effiong is reported to have in 2020, sued the NBC, Mohammed and Malami for arbitrarily amending the Broadcast Code and hiking the fine for hate speech from N500,000 to N5million.
The lawyer challenged the N5million fine on Nigeria Info 99.3FM Lagos and the threat by NBC to punish other broadcast stations in the country over alleged hate speech.
His suit followed the fine imposed on Nigeria Info by NBC for granting an interview to the late former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Dr. Obadiah Mailafia, who claimed that an unidentified northern governor was a Boko Haram commander.
Following the report, Effiong had in his supporting affidavit told the court that the actions of the NBC, the Minister of Information and the Nigerian government had gravely affected his freedom of expression and that of broadcast stations, broadcasters and other Nigerian citizens who also appear as guests on radio and television stations to express critical views about the government and public officeholders.
The lawyer argued that “abusing” or “insulting” the government could not be criminalised in a democracy.
