Amnesty International has stated that the National Broadcasting Commission’s (NBC) ban on the broadcast of Eedris Abdulkareem’s song, “Tell Your Papa,” is unlawful and constitutes a clear violation of freedom of expression.
Amnesty International said in a statement on Friday that President Bola Tinubu must immediately direct the NBC to withdraw the bizarre ban which violates a range of human rights.
It stated that categorising the song as “Not to be Broadcast” solely for being critical of the government and those in power is an abuse of authority and completely unacceptable.
According to the organisation “Nigerians have the right to freedom of expression and access to information and there is no legal justification to ban broadcasting the song on radio and television.
“Citing the deeply flawed and problematic Nigerian Broadcasting Code to justify the ban shows a new level of intolerance of dissenting voices”, the statement said.
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AI added that, the ban is entirely inconsistent and incompatible with the right to access information and media freedom in Nigeria, adding that, the ban highlighted the need to urgently repeal heavy censorship regulations of NBC that have been used to curb freedom of expression in the country.
It said, the arbitrary and unlawful ban by the NBC would have a disproportionate and chilling effect on the work of radio and television stations in Nigeria.
The statement continued, “This clamp down on artistic freedom is an appalling reminder that artists are at the risk of being silenced. Nothing can justify suffocating creative freedom.
“The decision of NBC to ban the song is a violation of Nigeria’s international obligations under international and regional standards, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
“It is not too late for President Bola Tinubu’s government to withdraw the ban which will have the sad repercussion of promoting censorship and generating a new wave of fear of repression.”
