The Nigerian Guild of Editors condemned the action taken by Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, over the shutdown of four broadcast stations for their coverage of a rally held by the Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate in the state, Dr Dauda Dare.
The NGE, in a statement issued on Monday and signed by its President, Mustapha Isah, and General Secretary, Iyobosa Uwugiaren, expressed concern over the shutdown of four broadcast stations: NTA, Gamji Television, Al-Umma Television and Pride FM Station, all located in Gusau, and called on Matawalle to immediately unseal them.
Although the state government claimed that the rally was organised despite a ban on campaigns over the alleged security situation in the state, the guild described the action as a violation of the constitution and other international instruments.
The statement read in part, “While the NGE doesn’t even want to go into the illegality of the ban on political activities in that state, our primary concern here is the unlawful and unconstitutional action of the state governor against the affected stations for carrying out their constitutional and social obligations – of reporting events and keeping the citizens informed of political developments in the state.
“The shut stations would have been accused of unprofessional misconduct if they didn’t cover that rally. We are also encouraged by the fact that the regulatory agency of broadcasting, the National Broadcasting Commission, has also condemned the unlawful action of Governor Bello Matawalle.
“The media reserves the right to cover all events, whether or not they are banned. No state government reserves the right to shut down any media house, despite their perceived infractions.
“In this case, the Zamfara State governor should have written a petition to the NBC, if at all the affected stations committed any infraction, instead resorting to self-help. The Guild stands for press freedom and freedom of expression and will always speak out against any attempt to muzzle the media.’’
