Group files complaint against monopoly of un-licensed TV channel

From: Femi Oyelola, Kaduna

The Northern Broadcast Media Owners Association (NBMOA) Board of Trustees has filed a complaint to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), and the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) against the monopoly of AREWA 24 TV Channel saying, it violates host communities consumer rights.
This was contained in a statement signed by the Chairman, Board of Trustees, Dr. Ahmed Tijjani Ramalan, and made available to the media in Kaduna, yesterday.
The statement stated that “the Board believes the founding Shareholders and Directors of the Network Arewa24 Limited are foreign persons based in the United States and some Nigerian Proxies who are illegally using and Bastardizing the name and Brand “AREWA” in Exploitation and Monopolizing the Commercial Broadcast Media Advertising Space of the Hausa speaking populace’s cultures and ideals by Self Claiming Jingles and Bastardizing the AREWA KNOT an emotive symbol of Northern Nigerian adopted by Sir Alhaji Ahmadu Bello (Sardauna of Sokoto) as a political identity.”
It further states that “The Ownership Structure under the SHAREHOLDERS AGREEMENT OF NETWORK AREWA24 LIMITED is crystal clear that all the founding Shareholders are not Hausas and thereby have no profound knowledge and insight of Arewa Cultures and ideals whatsoever thereby, doing things that are in contradiction with their cultures and beliefs.”