Court of Appeal Strikes Out NBC’s Appeal Against Judgment Barring Broadcast Fines
Oru Leonard
The Court of Appeal in Abuja has struck out an appeal filed by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), seeking to overturn a Federal High Court judgment that restrained it from imposing fines on broadcast stations, handing another legal victory to Media Rights Agenda (MRA).
In a unanimous decision delivered on June 17, 2026, the appellate court held that the NBC’s Notice of Appeal was fundamentally defective and therefore incompetent, depriving the court of jurisdiction to hear the matter.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Jane Esienanwan Inyang observed that while the parties before the Federal High Court were listed as the Incorporated Trustees of Media Rights Agenda and the National Broadcasting Commission, the appellant in the appeal was described as the “Nigerian Broadcasting Commission,” creating a discrepancy the court deemed significant.
According to the court, the defect went to the root of the appeal, as a competent Notice of Appeal is a prerequisite for the exercise of appellate jurisdiction. Justice Inyang ruled that the appeal was not initiated by the same legal entity that appeared before the lower court and therefore could not be entertained.
“The Notice of Appeal and the accompanying briefs are fundamentally defective and do not and cannot confer jurisdiction on this Court to hear and determine the appeal,” the court held, adding that there was “no appeal in fact and in law before this Court.”
The appeal stemmed from a January 17, 2024 judgment of the Federal High Court in Lagos, where Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia declared unlawful and unconstitutional the NBC’s decision to fine four broadcast operators ₦5 million each over the airing of documentaries on banditry and insecurity in Zamfara State.
The sanctions, imposed in August 2022, affected Multichoice Nigeria Limited, owners of DStv, TelCom Satellite Limited (TSTV), Trust TV Network Limited and NTA StarTimes Limited.
Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia held that the fines violated the constitutional right to freedom of expression and the public’s right to receive information without interference, as guaranteed under Section 39 of the Constitution and Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
At the March 25, 2026 hearing of the appeal, NBC was represented by Bashir Ramoni of SimmonsCooper Partners, while MRA was represented by Senior Advocate Ezenwa Anumnu of Joint Heirs Chambers.
The latest ruling adds to a series of setbacks for the broadcasting regulator. On April 2, 2026, the Court of Appeal also dismissed another NBC appeal challenging an earlier judgment delivered by Justice James Omotosho in May 2023, which held that only courts of law have the authority to impose fines as sanctions for criminal offences.
Justice Omotosho had also dismissed a subsequent NBC application seeking to set aside that judgment, reinforcing judicial limits on the Commission’s sanctioning powers.
The latest decision effectively leaves intact the Federal High Court judgment restraining the NBC from imposing fines on broadcast stations, while underscoring the importance of procedural compliance in appellate litigation.
Cover Photo: Justice Jane Esienanwan Inyang
Credit: MRA Media
