Court of Appeal Strikes Out NBC Appeal, Upholds Ban on Broadcast Fines

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has struck out an appeal filed by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) seeking to overturn a Federal High Court judgment that barred the commission from imposing fines on broadcast stations without judicial backing.

In a unanimous judgment delivered on Wednesday, the appellate court held that the NBC’s appeal was fundamentally defective and therefore incompetent in law.

Justice Jane Inyang, who delivered the lead judgment, identified a critical inconsistency in the identity of the appellant. According to the court, while the original suit before the Federal High Court was between the Incorporated Trustees of Media Rights Agenda and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), the notice of appeal was filed in the name of the “Nigerian Broadcasting Commission”, an entity different from the one that participated in the lower court proceedings.

The court held that the discrepancy was not a mere technical error but a fundamental defect that deprived the appellate court of jurisdiction to entertain the appeal.

“The notice of appeal and the accompanying briefs are fundamentally defective and do not and cannot confer jurisdiction on this court to hear and determine the appeal,” Justice Inyang ruled.

She stressed that a valid notice of appeal is the foundation of every appeal process and a mandatory requirement for an appellate court to exercise jurisdiction.

Consequently, the court held that there was effectively “no appeal in fact and in law” before it and struck out the matter.

The appeal arose from a January 17, 2024 judgment delivered by Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia of the Federal High Court, Lagos, who ruled that the NBC acted unlawfully and unconstitutionally when it imposed N5 million fines on MultiChoice Nigeria Limited (DStv), Telcom Satellite Limited (TStv), Trust TV Network Limited and NTA-StarTimes in August 2022.

The sanctions were imposed after the broadcasters aired documentaries and reports highlighting banditry and insecurity in Zamfara State. At the time, the NBC argued that the broadcasts undermined national security and violated provisions of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code.

However, Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia held that the sanctions violated the constitutional right to freedom of expression, including the right of citizens to receive information without interference, as guaranteed under Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

The latest judgment represents another major setback for the broadcast regulator in its prolonged legal battle over its authority to impose monetary sanctions on media organisations.

In April 2026, the Court of Appeal similarly dismissed another NBC appeal challenging a May 10, 2023 judgment delivered by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja.

In that case, the court ruled that fines constitute criminal sanctions and can only be imposed by courts of competent jurisdiction, not by administrative agencies or regulators. The appellate court also rejected an earlier NBC application seeking to set aside that judgment.

With Wednesday’s ruling, the judiciary has further reinforced limits on the commission’s enforcement powers, underscoring that any monetary sanctions against broadcasters must be grounded in due process and judicial authority.

The decision is expected to have far-reaching implications for broadcast regulation in Nigeria, particularly regarding the balance between regulatory oversight, press freedom and constitutional protections for freedom of expression.

Media rights advocates have consistently argued that allowing the NBC to act as investigator, prosecutor and judge in matters involving alleged broadcast violations undermines due process and creates a chilling effect on journalism and public-interest reporting.

The latest appellate court decision appears to strengthen that position, while leaving intact the Federal High Court judgments that have significantly curtailed the commission’s ability to impose unilateral financial penalties on broadcast organisations.