- Daily Trust Reacts
A fine of N5 million each has been imposed on Trust Television Network (Trust TV), MultiChoice, Startimes and TSTV over the broadcast of a documentary on bandits terrorising Zamfara and other parts of the North-West.
The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) imposed the fine on the documentary titled “Nigeria’s Banditry: The Inside Story” aired by the stations.
The documentary on TRUST TV was aired on March 5, 2022.
The fine notification was contained in a letter dated August 3, 2022, and signed by its Director General, Balarabe Shehu Illela, noting that its broadcast of the said documentary contravened sections of the National Broadcasting Code.
However, Daily Trust, the parent company of Trust TV, in its response to the NBC fine, said the documentary was aired in public interest.
The statement reads, “While we are currently studying the Commission’s action and weighing our options, we wish to state unequivocally that as a television station, we believe we were acting in the public interest by shedding light on the thorny issue of banditry and how it is affecting millions of citizens of our country.
“The documentary traces the root of the communal tensions and systemic inadequacies which led to the armed conflict that is setting the stage for another grand humanitarian crisis in Nigeria.
“It presents insights into the intersection of injustice, ethnicity and bad governance as drivers of the conflict. It also aggregates the voices of experts and key actors towards finding solutions, including those of the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, and Senator Saidu Mohammed Dansadau, who hails from one of the worst-hit communities in Zamfara State.”
The statement added that other experts who featured in the documentary include scholars like Abubakar Saddique of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and Murtala Ahmed Rufai of the Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto, who have both studied the subject of banditry for an extended period.
