Abuja, April 2025 – The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) for banning Eedris Abdulkareem’s song “Tell Your Papa” from the airwaves.
NBC banned radio and television stations from playing the song on air for allegedly violating “public decency standards”.
SERAP disclosed this on Sunday in a statement signed by Kolawole Oluwadare, its Deputy Director.
It said the suit with number FHC/L/CS/797/2025, was filed at the Federal High Court last Thursday.
According to the statement, the suit is seeking among others:
“An order “setting aside the arbitrary and illegal ban on Eedris Abdulkareem’s song ‘Tell Your Papa’, for being inconsistent and incompatible with the rights to freedom of expression, access to information, and media freedom.”
“An order of perpetual injunction restraining the NBC whether jointly or severally or any other authority, person or group of persons from preventing the airing of Eedris Abdulkareem’s song on all broadcast stations and other similar media platforms in Nigeria.”
“A declaration that the NBC’s directive, issued via a letter dated 9 April 2025 to all broadcast stations in Nigeria, banning the airing of Eedris Abdulkareem’s song is unlawful and inconsistent and incompatible with the rights to freedom of expression, access to information, and media freedom.”
SERAP is arguing that:
“The NBC is censoring music under the guise of ‘protecting public decency’. Public decency is not a carte blanche for banning Eedris’ song and placing a chokehold on information and suppressing peaceful dissent.”
“Freedom of expression constitutes one of the essential foundations of a democratic society and extends not only to information or ideas that are favourably received, but also to those that offend, shock or disturb in such domains as political discourse and commentary on public affairs.”
“The ban on Eedris’ song has a chilling effect on freedom of expression, access to information and media freedom. The NBC has not shown that the song would impose a specific risk of harm to a legitimate State interest that outweighs the public interest in the information provided by the song.”
“Section 3.1.8 of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code is overbroad and excessively intrusive, as it breaches the fundamental rights to freedom of expression, access to information and media freedom.
“The ban on Eedris’ song fails to meet the requirements of legality, necessity, and proportionality.”
“The requirement of necessity also implies an assessment of the proportionality of the grounds, with the aim of ensuring that the excuse of ‘objectionable nature’ and ‘public decency’ are not used as a pretext to ban Eedris’ song and unduly intrude upon Nigerians’ human rights.”
“Expressions, whether artistic or not, always remain protected under the right to freedom of expression. The NBC directive is also inconsistent and incompatible with the right to freedom of artistic expression and creativity.”
“Art constitutes an important vehicle for each person, individually and in community with others, as well as groups of people, to develop and express their humanity. Artists may entertain people, but they also contribute to social debates, sometimes bringing counter-discourses and potential counterweights to existing power centres.”
“The vitality of artistic creativity is necessary for the functioning of democratic societies. Banning or removing creative expressions from public access is a way to restrict artistic freedom.”
“It is inconsistent and incompatible with the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] and the country’s international human rights obligations to use vague and overly broad grounds of ‘objectionable nature’ and ‘public decency’ as justifications to ban Eedris’ song.”
“The action by the NBC is arbitrary, illegal, and unconstitutional, as it is contrary to the provisions of section 39 of the Nigerian Constitution, article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Nigeria is a state party.
“Media freedom and media plurality are a central part of the effective exercise of freedom of expression.
“The media has a vital role to play as ‘public watchdog’ in imparting information of serious public concern and should not be inhibited or intimidated from playing that role.” (GBN)
