By Lateef Ibrahim
The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has warned broadcasters, online publishers, bloggers and other participants in Nigeria’s rapidly expanding information ecosystem against the use of their platforms to spread misinformation, hate speech, inflammatory material and other content capable of undermining peaceful elections.
The warning comes as political campaigns for the 2027 Presidential and National Assembly elections commenced Wednesday in the country.
In a statement yesterday by Moses Jolayemi, the Technical Adviser to the Director-General of the NBC, Mr. Charles Ebuebu, the Commission said the commencement of political campaigns places an even greater responsibility on all those who disseminate information to the public to uphold accuracy, fairness, professionalism and responsibility.
The NBC said radio and television broadcasters, in particular, must recognise that their platforms have enormous influence on public opinion and the choices citizens make during elections.
It therefore urged all licensed broadcasters to ensure that political coverage is fair, balanced and equitable, stressing that stations must not use their platforms to promote or suppress particular political parties, candidates or political viewpoints.
The Commission also warned against the unverified presentation of political claims, allegations, statistics or assertions as facts.
According to the statement, “allegations involving corruption, criminality, electoral manipulation, misconduct and other issues capable of damaging the reputation of individuals or institutions must be subjected to appropriate editorial verification before being broadcast”.
The right of reply, it added, must be respected where a person or organisation has been genuinely misrepresented.
The NBC further cautioned presenters, anchors, reporters, producers and hosts of political programmes against allowing personal political views to be presented as established facts.
It said presenters must not intimidate or harass guests, suppress opposing viewpoints or manipulate discussions in favour of particular political interests.
The responsibility for what goes on air, the Commission stressed, remains with the broadcaster, including material introduced by guests, callers and panellists during live or interactive programmes.
The NBC said it would also pay close attention to the allocation of political airtime, directing broadcasters to maintain accurate records showing the dates, programmes and duration of political airtime allocated to parties and candidates.
The Commission emphasised that equal opportunity must go beyond merely making airtime available for sale.
Editorial and programming practices, it said, must not systematically confer an unfair advantage on a political party, candidate or viewpoint.
Political advertising must also remain clearly distinguishable from news, editorial content, analysis and independent programming.
The Commission reminded broadcasters that political advertisements are subject to the provisions of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code and must meet the requirements of truth, decency, good taste and morality.
Of particular concern to the Commission is the potential use of broadcast, digital and social platforms to spread inflammatory and divisive political content.
It warned against content capable of inciting violence, promoting hatred, threatening public order or deepening ethnic, religious, regional or political divisions.
The Commission said the political season must not become an avenue for mobilising Nigerians against one another.
It also cautioned broadcasters and other information disseminators against spreading election results or projections from unofficial sources.
The NBC said collated figures from polling stations, exit polls and other unofficial sources must not be used to project or speculate on which candidate is leading or likely to win.
Election results and declarations of winners, it stressed, should only be broadcast as announced by the duly authorised electoral officer.
The Commission also reminded broadcasters of the statutory campaign silence period, directing that partisan political broadcasts, campaigns, jingles and announcements must cease not later than 24 hours before polling day.
The NBC said its monitoring of political broadcasts would be intensified throughout the electioneering period.
The monitoring will cover not only paid political advertisements but also news bulletins, current affairs programmes, political debates, phone-in programmes, interviews, commentaries, sponsored programmes, live broadcasts and other programming through which political content is disseminated.
The Commission said particular attention would be paid to patterns of airtime allocation, fairness and balance, inflammatory content, misinformation, hate speech, incitement, presenter conduct, political advertising and compliance with the campaign silence period.
The NBC also urged online publishers, bloggers, social-media commentators and other content creators participating in the dissemination of election-related information to exercise the highest degree of responsibility in the interest of national peace and democratic stability.
It said the credibility of Nigeria’s electoral process would depend not only on the conduct of political parties, candidates and electoral officials, but also on the credibility of the information environment in which citizens make their choices.
The Commission therefore called on broadcasters, editors, presenters, producers, reporters, political advertisers, online publishers, bloggers and other stakeholders in the information ecosystem to avoid becoming vehicles for the spread of false, hateful, inflammatory or deliberately misleading information.
The NBC said its objective was not to restrict legitimate political expression or robust political debate but to ensure that Nigeria’s information environment remained conducive to peaceful democratic participation.
The Commission urged all stakeholders to familiarise themselves with the relevant provisions of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, the Electoral Act 2026 and applicable regulations and guidelines issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The current INEC timetable provides for Presidential and National Assembly campaigns to commence on August 19, 2026, while campaigns for Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections commence on September 9, 2026.
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