BY OUR CORRESPONDENT
The National Broadcasting Commission, NBC has sanctioned the Ekiti State Broadcasting Service for unethical conduct and refusal to heed its warning. The station has therefore been asked to pay a sum of N500,000, which is the highest fine applicable for the violation of broadcast ethics. The Director-General of NBC, Malam Ishaq Modibbo Kawu announced this at a news conference in Abuja. Perhaps the Commission would have overlooked the infractions had the station reversed itself. But Kawu claimed that it ignored the advice from his Commission and in fact went ahead with the violations it was cautioned against.
To start with, the NBC director general said his Commission frowned at the appointment of Lere Olayinka, erstwhile spokesman for Governor Ayodele Fayose as the chief executive officer of the station. Olayinka’s appointment was not faulted though because of him being an aide of the governor, rather the Commission feels that having been made the director general of the station, he should not have taken up appointment as the spokesman for the campaign organisation of Kolapo Okusola, candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP in Saturday’s election.
However, it appears that what broke the camel’s back was the decision of the station to give its platform for Governor Fayose to instruct people of Ekiti State to shun President Muhammadu Buhari who was visiting the state as one of the leaders of opposition All Progressives Congress, APC for the rally in support of Kayode Fayemi.
