The Federal Government, FG, has increased the fine for hate speech from N500,000 to N5 million.
Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed who made this known Tuesday in Lagos at the unveiling of the sixth edition of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code said the Federal Government has also prohibited the backlog of advertising debts by agencies.
The code which is an amendment to the existing code which was launched in Kano in July 2019 has some provisions which are entirely new while others are replacing existing provisions.
Mohammed said, “The amendments were necessitated by a Presidential directive, in the wake of the 2019 general elections, for an inquiry into the regulatory role of the National Broadcasting Commission, NBC as well as the conduct of the various broadcast stations before, during and after the elections”.
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The Minister added that the code also restricts monopolistic and anti-competitive behaviour in the broadcast industry. “The law on the registration of Web Broadcasting grants the country the opportunity to regulate negative foreign broadcasts that can harm us as a nation.
Such harms could be in the area of security, protection for minors, protection of human dignity, economic fraud, privacy etc”
He added that the provisions on the responsibility of broadcast stations to devote airtime to national emergencies mandates terrestrial and Pay TV channels to make their services available to Nigerians at time of national emergencies like the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic for their education and enlightenment.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
