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The Management of the National Broadcasting Commission, NBC, and the leadership of the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria, BON, have agreed that all broadcasting stations will submit their audited accounts for the last 17 years. Federal Government stations were to submit theirs from 1990 when the NBC Law was amended to effectively include them. They were all expected to submit the audited accounts latest by November 30, 2009.
The agreement was reached at a meeting of the NBC and BON, held at the Commission’s headquarters, on Thursday, August 6, 2009
The Commission also expressed concern over the non payment of the 2.5% on the income of broadcast stations that is due to the Commission.
The Director General of NBC, Engr. Yomi Bolarinwa said that since the Commission came into existence 17 years ago, very few licensees, mostly cable operators, have ever submitted an audited account report to the NBC not to talk of paying the 2.5% of their income to the Commission as stipulated by law.
Responding, the Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria, VON, who is also the Chairman, BON, explained some of the difficulties being faced by the broadcaster, including power and inflation. While assuring the Commission that his members would obey the law, he pleaded for understanding by the Commission.
On other issues tabled at the meeting, the NBC DG expressed dismay that any station would fail to pay staff salaries for up to a period of six to seven months, declaring that the Commission had received several petitions from individual who had endured such a misfortune.
He further advised that prompt payment of salaries would help in curbing corruption in the industry, including the “brown envelop” syndrome among journalists.
Another important issue discussed at the meeting was the indiscriminate importation of broadcast equipment without recourse to the Commission. Engr Bolarinwa drew the attention of broadcast managers to the position of the law guiding the purchase of broadcast equipment. He said that all equipments purchased and imported into the country must conform to the international broadcast standard, and must also be inspected and certified by the Commission before clearance by the Nigeria Customs Service at the point of entry. He explained that the Commission would find it difficult to okay any letter of credit from the Central Bank after the fact.
Programme content also featured at the meeting. In his presentation, the Director, DG’s office, Mr. Eddy Aina, said that, it is quiet worrisome that broadcast stations make no effort to differentiate between the broadcast version of music and its club version. He also noted that traditional had been relegated to the background in our radio stations. Furthermore, he stated, there appeared to be no quality control in the operation of stations anymore.
And on most discussion programmes, Mr. Aina added, issues were always treated in a lopsided manner, without presenting all sides to the issue as the Code stipulated, while in others the anchor persons took positions and outdid the guests rather than remain as moderators and purveyors of information as dictated by ethics and the law.
News content was another point of discussion at the meeting. Engr Bolarinwa urged broadcast stations to desist from tilting news materials to cause dissatisfaction between the government and the governed, noting that some television stations were in the habit of using visuals out of context. On good taste and decency in news, he cited an example of the coverage of the recent “Boko Haram” crisis where some stations showed close ups of unsightly pictures of corpses littering the streets, which was unprofessional, noting that even foreign stations showed more respect to our dead.
Giving an update on digitization, Mr. Mark Ojiah, Director, Broadcast Policy and Research, said that President ‘Yar-adua approved 17th June, 2012 as the transition date from analogue to digital broadcasting. On October 13, 2008 a Presidential Advisory Committee was inaugurated with the key mandate to suggest the best way to achieve a successful transition by 2012. He announced that on June 29, 2009 the Committee submitted the report on the transition process to the Honourable Minister of Information and Communications. The Commission was now awaiting Government White Paper to determine the way forward.
Speaking on behalf of its members on the issues raised, the Chairman, BON, Alhaji Abubakar Jijiwa, commended the Board of Management of NBC for reviving the platform for this meeting, pointing out that it promoted harmony and understanding among broadcast practitioners.
On the late payment of staff salaries, Alhaji Abubakar Jijiwa said that it was an area of concern that was discussed at one of the BON General Assemblies since 2005, and was unhappy that it was still a problem. He promised to table it during the next General Assembly slated for August 15th, 2009 in Lokoja.
Other issues like purchase of broadcast equipments, programme contents and news materials, the Chairman promised to bring them up for discussion during the next General Assembly.
A member of BON, Mr. Guy Murrey Bruce of Silver Birds Television observed that it was useful for both BON and NBC to understand that there were mitigating circumstances such as near-absence of electric power supply, lack of skilled personnel, low creativity, and poor professionalism in the broadcast organisations. While pledging to cooperate fully, Mr Murray-Bruce also pleaded with the Commission to take a critical look at the adversities the broadcast stations were facing and consider their plights.
Engr Bolarinwa reassured broadcasters that NBC was reasonable and had always had the interest of the industry at heart, but insisted that it was in the interest of the industry to obey the law as making regulation by the Code impossible would open the door for unwanted interference in the industry. He then thanked BON for attending the meeting and the cordial relations the Commission had enjoyed.
The meeting ended on a friendly note, with the BON Chairman reiterating his invitation to the DG to attend the 50th General Assembly scheduled to hold in Lokoja to update the organisation on the transition to digital terrestrial broadcasting.
Report by Hadiza Umar
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