Broadcasting
Broadcaster Calls out Lai Mohammed, Describes Him as Minister of NBC Affairs
By Adelanwa Olajubu
I have followed the affairs of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) over the past two decades, because of the role it plays in regulating broadcasting in our country.
I believe NBC came at the right time, when President Babangida deregulated the industry during the 1990s. I am one of the beneficiaries of the system.
I served in the Cross River State Radio in Calabar, in the early nineties, and I have worked on and off, in several broadcasting stations since then.
I am one of those who believe that NBC is a force for good in our climate. It is there to ensure that broadcasters behave ethically, and in order to ensure a tranquil environment in our country, with its several fault lines that opportunists can exploit to cause disaffection.
That was why many of us applauded NBC early last year, when it closed down Ekiti state radio and television, after the elections. Former Governor, Ayo Fayose wanted to cause mayhem, by trying to announce his own results. I
t wold have been a repeat of the sad experience of the old Ondo state, in the 1983 elections, which resulted in the loss of several lives and the destruction of property. NBC’s quick intervention saved many lives in Ekiti state.
Because I follow keenly developments in and around the NBC, I have been worried about the manner that the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Muhammed, is gradually turning himself into the Minister of NBC Affairs, since his recent re-appointment.
Hardly has a day passed, that he won’t mention something related to the work of the regulatory commission. It is almost as if the NBC does not have a Board in place, or the organization no longer have a Director General.
What is the basis of Alhaji Lai Muhammed’s compulsive obsession with that organization? I have read the story of the Committee that he has set up to implement reforms in the NBC.
And while no one can fault the fact that every public institution needs reformation to meet growing exigencies; what might cause problem is when plans for reform, become an avenue to pursue a personal agenda.
For instance, all broadcasting industry insiders know that Alhaji Lai Muhammed does not have a good relationship with the NBC Director General, Mr. Ishaq Modibbo Kawu.
So when the Minister of Information appointed a Director working under the NBC DG to head a reform implementation committee, a lot of eye brows were raised by watchers.
Why did Alhaji Lai Muhammed make such an appointment? Did he do so in consultation with the DG or inspite of the DG? What role did the Minister assign to the Board of the NBC, which by law is supposed to be directing any reform in the institution?
Did he carry them along or was he actually behaving like a Sole Administrator of the NBC, which is not in the Act setting up the Commission?
How does the Minister justify the fact that his implementation committee is filled with licensees of the Commission? What type of reform can licensees impose on their regulatory agency, that can be fair?
Didn’t the Minister give this a good thought, before putting together his implementation team? And did he not expect that a backlash was going to come from the Board of the Commission, given the clear place that they occupy within the ambits of the law, the Act, which sets up the Commission?
In his heart can he convince himself that he did not disrespect the Board, and especially the Chairman, a two-time Minister, and a leading politician in his own right too?
What exactly is the crime that the NBC Director General has committed against the Minister, that he seems so bent on not only undermining his authority but also seeming to want to prematurely end his tenure at the NBC? For those of us looking from outside, the feeling was that as people from the same state, who were in the same political camp, to end the Saraki reign in Kwara, their relationship would be made beneficial for their state and Nigeria.
It doesn’t seem to be so. My question for Alhaji Lai Muhammed is that, if you get the Director General out of the NBC, would you ever be allowed to appoint another Kwaran in his place? Or you cannot be bothered with such niceties, because all you want is to terminate your Kwara man’s tenure?
And is the Minister even thinking of the negatives that some of his pronouncements are logging for the Buhari administration? When he openly says that he would regulate social media, who is he speaking for really? Is it a coincidence that the Vice President responded to him, that it was not a proper thing to think of regulating or controlling social media?
Is Alhaji Lai Muhammed not helping to reinforce the discourse about President Buhari, being anti-press freedom? Is that the type of negative image that the country’s Minister of Information should be reinforcing, in his over enthusiastic statements, that all come within the whole scenario about his seeming takeover of the NBC? And what is the story that he peddles about issuing a new “National Broadcasting Code”?
The last time I checked, there is a Nigeria Broadcasting Code, which the NBC and the industry work on and is used as the instrument to regulate the broadcasting industry. Who will Alhaji Lai Muhammed use his own “National Broadcasting Code” to regulate? How will he produce such an instrument? Didn’t the NBC release a 6th edition of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code a few months ago? And from what we know, the Code is produced once every four to five years. So how is Alhaji Lai Muhammed going to bring out his own “National Broadcasting Code”, to take the place of the legitimate Nigeria Broadcasting Code?
A lot seems to be happening. And most of these are coming from the pursuit of a personal, and a not too hidden, agenda, by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Muhammed.
It is so clear, that the more he states that he got presidential approval for his actions, the more hollow it sounds. Presidential approval cannot be a fig leaf to hide a putrid, personal agenda, which might end up destroying the institution, than reforming it.
Alhaji Lai Muhammed is believed to rely on a tiny coterie of individuals, who have personal scores to settle, and have all bunched together to cause as much upheavals as possible in the affairs of the National Broadcasting Commission.
One of the jokes that someone made at the just concluded BON Congress in Lagos, was to ask when Alhaji Lai Muhammed would move his table and chair into the premises of the National Broadcasting Commission, to complete his takeover of the institution.
What is shameful in all that is happening, is that those who can call Minister Lai Muhammed to order, have maintained an unusual silence, as he continues his relentless pursuit of a personal agenda, at the NBC, through a most controversial NBC reform implementation committee.
Surely, President Muhammadu Buhari did not appoint Alhaji Lai Muhammed as a Minister of NBC Affairs. He should live to the oath that he swore to, never to use the position to pursue a personal agenda, because there is so much palpable personal vendetta seeping through all his actions at the National Broadcasting Commission. Nigeria will be the loser, if Alhaji Lai Muhammed is allowed to see through his personal vendetta at the NBC.
Adelanwa Olajubu, a broadcaster, is from Idanre, Ondo State.
Lagos State Electricity Regulatory Commission (LASERC) has issued a new directive establishing a formal regulatory framework for electricity market operations within Lagos.
With the release of Order No. LASERC ORDER/001/2025, the commission finalizes the shift of oversight from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to LASERC, aligning with the Electricity Act 2023 and Lagos State Electricity Law 2024.
Under the new regulations, individuals or entities involved in electricity-related activities in Lagos must obtain a license or permit from LASERC. Licenses issued by other regulatory bodies will no longer be recognized. Unlicensed operators must immediately halt operations and apply for proper authorization to avoid penalties, which include a fine of ₦20 million and additional daily fines of ₦20,000 for continued violations.
LASERC has encouraged entities unsure of their regulatory status to seek clarification to prevent sanctions. Despite the transition, existing national guidelines, including tariff structures, grid codes, and safety regulations, will remain in effect unless amended.
Dr. Fouad Animashaun, CEO and Executive Commissioner of LASERC, emphasized that the order is designed to ensure a secure, efficient, and reliable electricity market in Lagos.
He reiterated the commission’s commitment to global standards and safeguarding the interests of electricity consumers and investors.
This policy marks a significant shift in the state’s power sector and aims to enhance regulatory compliance while ensuring a more structured and effective electricity market.
Video entertainment company MultiChoice’s woes are persisting with the company continuing to suffer massive losses in revenue and subscribers.
This emerged today when the DStv parent company announced its financial results for the year ended 31 March (FY25).
In a statement to shareholders on the Stock Exchange News Service, the JSE-listed firm says the past two financial years have been a period of significant financial disruption for economies, corporates and consumers across sub-Saharan Africa due to challenging macro-economic factors.
Combined with the impact of structural industry changes in video entertainment such as the rise of piracy, streaming services and social media, this has materially affected the overall performance of the MultiChoice Group, it notes.
Over this period, MultiChoice says the group lost 2.8 million active linear subscribers and had to absorb a R10.2 billion negative impact on its topline due to local currency depreciation against the US dollar.
For the year ended 31 March, the company reveals that linear subscribers were down 1.2 million or 8% year-on-year (YoY) to 14.5 million active subscribers, with the loss evenly split between South African (600 000) and Rest of Africa (600 000).
Although reflecting an improvement on FY24 trends, MultiChoice says this indicates ongoing broad-based pressure across the group’s entire customer base.
Active paying Showmax subscribers were up 44% YoY, reflecting healthy growth and gaining regional market share, it adds.
Group revenue declined by R5.2 billion or 9% YoY to R50.8 billion, mainly due to an 11% decline in subscription revenues (-1% organic) caused by foreign currency and subscriber volume headwinds and the deconsolidation of the NMSIS insurance business from December 2024, it explains.
According to the firm, this was partially offset by inflationary pricing and new product growth (DStv Internet, DStv Stream and Extra Stream).
Trading profit, which declined by R3.8 billion or 49% YoY to R4 billion, was materially affected by the R2.3 billion organic increase in trading losses in Showmax and the R5.2 billion in foreign currency revenue losses, partially offset by a significant outperformance in delivering total cost savings of R3.7 billion.
Adjusted core headline earnings, the board’s revised measure of the underlying performance of the business, shifted to a loss of R800 million (FY24: earnings of R1.3 billion) due to lower trading profit and hedging losses in FY25 (compared to gains in FY24), partially offset by smaller losses on cash remittances from Nigeria.
The group incurred a free cash outflow of R500 million in FY25 (FY24: inflow of R600 million), impacted by lower profitability, higher lease repayments due to timing and partially offset by improved working capital management as well as a 29% YoY decline in capex.
At year-end, the group held R5.1 billion in cash and cash equivalents and retains access to R3 billion in undrawn general borrowing facilities.
A part of the R12 billion term loan was repaid early by using the R900 million upfront proceeds from the NMSIS transaction (ie R1.2 billion, net of tax), says the company.
The group operates in numerous markets across Africa and internationally, resulting in significant exposure to foreign exchange volatility.
Amid the challenges, MultiChoice states that management acted decisively to ensure that the group could withstand these headwinds, focusing on key areas within its control.
It notes that this has meant maintaining a discipline of inflationary pricing, with price increases of 5.7% in South Africa in FY25 (FY24: 5.6%) and an average of 31% in local currency in Rest of Africa (FY24: 27%), which enabled the group to offset subscriber volume pressures and deliver 1% YoY organic revenue growth in the current financial year.
In addition, further efficiencies were implemented to manage costs and cash flows without unduly sacrificing the group’s customer value proposition, it adds.
In this regard, the group delivered R3.7 billion in cost savings, well ahead of management’s initial R2 billion target (and the revised R2.5 billion target set at interims) and almost double the R1.9 billion saved in FY24, the company says.
Afia TV & Radio has announced its official entry into the Lagos media market, in its commitment to expanding the broadcaster’s footprint, connecting businesses to audiences across Nigeria, and redefining regional media excellence.
Chief Emeka Mba,
Nnamdi Obanya, general manager of Afia TV & Radio, said there is only one digital satellite and one digital station in the southeastern region of Nigeria, which is Afia.
Obanya, stated that: “We are specialists in developing products. A programme on our channel, ‘How Market’, is where we talk to the people in the market to tell their stories and advertise their products on AFIA.”
According to him, “the market world has changed a lot, as the physical market has become a ware house while people are buying digitally.”
Chief Emeka Mba, founder and CEO, stated: “The parley brought together top media buyers, advertising agencies, and communication professionals for engaging conversations around emerging trends, innovation, and future-forward strategies in media planning and buying. The event also served as a platform for Afia TV and radio to unveil its offerings, platforms, and unique value proposition to Lagos-based stakeholders.”
While noting that they are thrilled to bring Afia’s fresh, original, and regional perspective to Lagos, Mba said, “this parley signals our readiness to collaborate, innovate, and deliver impactful results for our partners through data-driven content and targeted reach especially for brands looking to penetrate the southern Nigerian market.”
Equipped with modern broadcast studios, digital-first production capabilities, and a highly experienced team, Afia TV & Radio is poised to make a bold impression on the Lagos media landscape.
The media brand delivers high-quality programming ranging from news and documentaries to lifestyle, business, culture, and entertainment only in south-east but in Lagos, African and beyond, we want to be chief marketing platform of the eastern region, we are the only 24/7 radio station now in Enugu.
Aliko Dangote Signs out @ Dangote Sugar Refinery as Chairman
Court Declines Access Bank’s Request to Freeze MTNN Account over N180Bn Claims
FG Mulls Fibre Optic Layout to Bridge Internet Gaps
Report Reveals New Malware Posing as an AI Assistant Steals User Data
MTN Mulls Establishment of Fintech Firm in Nigeria, Others
General News23 hours agoAfDB to Provide $184.1mfor Africa’s Largest Solar Energy, Battery Storage Project
News3 days agoCDCFIB Warns against Recruitment Racketeers
Telecom3 days agoMeta, FMCIDE Unveil AI Accelerator to Drive Innovation in Nigeria
News3 days agoFG May Forfeits $4m from World Bank Loan over Audit Flop
Telecom3 days agoNigeria Leads the Charge in Green Innovation @MTN’s Africa PachiPanda Challenge
Broadcasting3 days agoAfia TV and Radio Stamps Footprints in Lagos
E-Financial3 days agoNDIC Begins Final Settlements to Creditors of Liquidated Premier Bank
Telecom2 days agoMTN and Ecobank Launch Chess Championship to Empower Nigeria’s Youth