Baba-Ahmed: Why Tinubu's Camp Wants Channels TV Sanctioned

The camp of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, has stated that it is seeking a sanction on Channels TV by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) over alleged incendiary comments made by Labour Party vice presidential candidate, Yusuf Datt Baba-Ahmed.

The reason for the sanction is contained in a petition signed by Tinubu's Director of Media and Publicity, Bayo Onanuga and issued on Thursday.

According to the petition, Baba-Ahmed during his appearance on Channels TV made certain remarks that questioned the integrity of the presidential election held on February 25, 2023.

“In line with Section 14.0.1 of the Nigerian Broadcasting Code 6th edition stating the duty of the National Broadcasting Commission to accept complaints from aggrieved persons, bodies or members of the public and investigate as well as apply sanctions where necessary, the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council hereby petitions the Commission on what it considers breaches by CHANNELS TV last week on its programme ‘Politics Today’ which airs daily at 7 pm on weekdays.

“He (Datto) said the Labour Party won the elections.

“This is a fallacy and not correct. According to the Code, a Broadcaster is liable when his guest is allowed to make a wild statement that is inaccurate and not based on fact. 

”The only factual figures empirically collated as the final result is the one released by the Independent National Electoral Commission which placed Labour Party as third.

“The guest on the programme in question Datti Baba-Ahmed said the President of the country Muhammadu Buhari should not swear in the President-elect because he did not score 25% vote in the FCT, being one of the prerequisites for being declared winner.

“This is a subversive statement since the matter is before the tribunal and is among the issues submitted in their petition to the courts for adjudication.

“Therefore until and unless the court rules otherwise, the status quo is the INEC position as declared in the final results

“The guest Datti Baba Ahmed’s comments about Labour Party winning the presidential vote undermines constituted authority given to INEC in the 1999 Constitution as the body vested with the powers to conduct and announce the results of national general elections in Nigeria”, the petition reads.