Media Rights Agenda (MRA) has tasked the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to disclose the status of payment of license fees by all broadcasting stations and platforms operating in Nigeria and the amount of indebtedness of each of the stations owing license fees.

The MRA request is made pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, 2011 and signed by MRA’s Communications Officer, Mr. Idowu Adewale. Specifically, MRA wants the NBC to provide it with a list of all broadcasting stations and platforms operating in Nigeria licensed by the Commission and the amount that each of them is required to pay as license fees.

The FOI request was addressed to the Director-General of the Commission, Mallam Balarabe Ilelah.

MRA requested in the application the status of payment of each of the licensed broadcasting stations from the date of its license to date of the request, adding that for those licensed broadcasting stations that are indebted to the Commission, it should disclose the amount of indebtedness of each of the stations and the period covered by the amount.

Besides, the organization said, for broadcasting corporations that are owned by various State Governments, which were included in the list of broadcasting stations whose broadcast licenses were announced by NBC’s Director-General in his press briefing on Friday, August 19, 2022, to provide a breakdown of the amount of indebtedness by each of the radio stations and each of the television stations owned by the respective State-owned broadcasting corporations.

The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) had in July announced the revocation of the operating licenses of 53 broadcast stations owing debt amounting to N2.6 billion in licensing fees.

The NBC later extended its first deadline to the broadcast station by 24 hours due to what he called appeals by the affected broadcast stations, relevant stakeholders, public spirited organisations, and organisations.

The statement was titled: NBC Extends Enforcement of Revocation Order on Debtor Broadcast Stations from 24 Hours to Wednesday August 23, 2022.

“This is to inform all the affected broadcast stations whose licenses were revoked and given 24 hours pay all outstanding license fees that the National Broadcasting Commission has extended the period which all outstanding debts are to be paid from 24 hours to Wednesday, August 23, 2022.

“All affected broadcast stations are to fall to defray their debts on or before August 23,2022 are directed to shut down by 12 am on August 24, 2022.

Later, the Federal High Court, sitting in Lagos stopped President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) from revoking the licences of the 53 broadcast stations in the country and shutting down the stations for allegedly failing to renew their licenses.

The court order was sequel to a legal action instituted by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), and the Nigerian Guild of Editors.

In a statement signed by the General Secretary of Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), Iyobosa Uwugiaren and the Deputy Director of the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), Kola Oluwadare, the two groups stated that Justice Akintayo Aluko (Court 8) granted an order of interim injunction, following the hearing of an argument on ‘’Motion Exparte’’ by NGE and SERAP.

In the suit, the two groups had asked the court for, “an order of interim injunction restraining Buhari and NBC, their agents from revoking the licenses of 53 broadcast stations in the country and shutting their down operations, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice filed contemporaneously in this suit.”