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Niger Governor Orders Shutdown of Radio Station – Details
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The station’s licence is to be revoked, and its owner profiled.
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Badeggi FM insists it operates within NBC guidelines and seeks due process.
Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State has ordered the closure of Badeggi FM Radio in Minna, accusing the station of inciting the public against his administration.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the directive was issued during an expanded All Progressives Congress (APC) Caucus meeting at the Government House and conveyed in a statement by the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Bologi Ibrahim.
According to the statement, Bago instructed the State Commissioner of Police and the Commissioner for Homeland Security, Brigadier General Bello Abdullahi Mohammed (Rtd), to seal the station, confiscate its licence, and profile its owner.
“Governor Bago accused the owner of the station of promoting violence and directed that the licence be revoked,” Ibrahim stated. “He emphasised that the activities of Badeggi FM undermine peace and security in the state.”
In response, the Director of Operations at Badeggi FM, Abubakar Shuaib, criticised the governor’s approach, urging him to follow due process by involving the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC). Shuaib argued that the station operates within regulatory guidelines and is constantly monitored by NBC.
“The right thing is to write to NBC for investigation,” he said. “NBC has our programme schedule and monitors our content daily. Let the regulatory body verify whether we breached any broadcasting codes. Our mission is to hold leaders accountable, not to destabilise public peace or target any government.”
Shuaib further called on security operatives to desist from harassing the station’s staff, insisting that Badeggi FM remains committed to ethical journalism.
The NBC has yet to comment on the development.
