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Tag: Okoh Aihe

  • For telecoms, the curse of the low hanging fruits – By Okoh Aihe

    For telecoms, the curse of the low hanging fruits – By Okoh Aihe

    They came on the wings of hope. Was it building castles in the air? Oh, the commonality of cliché! Nigeria will be good again. Life will be worth celebrating. Life will be safe. Food will be available. The dollar would return to the pre-1999 value. They would put an end to fuel subsidy, and electricity would be available to the people, because any government that couldn’t resolve the problem of electricity or power within six months was irresponsible. Their government would not be irresponsible. Transportation – rail, road and air – will work once again in our nation.

    The only thing this government didn’t promise us was that they would bring the moon down so that, like Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, the American astronauts that went to the moon in July 1969, Nigerians could also step on it and say “we come in peace for all mankind.”

    Come to think of it, Nigeria needed peace at the time. The nation needed hope and needed good men to stay in the gap and raise the standards. APC, as a political party, raised the men that filled that gap and began to feed the people with the sweetness of hope. They took the word, Panglossian, and painted it on a canvass of hope so that Nigerians would have no reason to despair ever again. Nobody ever thought of the flip side.

    The unquestioned flip side has become a haunting reality. Having placed some men and women of questionable competence in strategic offices, this government has failed so miserably that it is looking for all kinds of channels to raise finances to fund its operations. One of such channels, unfortunately, is the telecommunications industry which, at the moment, continues to outperform other sectors in spite of the government’s failure to protect the sector.

    Globally, the telecoms industry suffers the fate of the low hanging fruits, readily available for any government in need to quickly pluck and solve its problems. For some of us with roots in the village, the expression, low hanging fruits, only stirs a nostalgia, some pleasurable throwback of those journeys to the farms after school, to meet your parents, and the joy of savouring the fruits of those economic trees that lined the sides of the farm route, to quench your immediate hunger.

    Low hanging fruits. You didn’t need to struggle much before harvesting enough to fill your stomach. But life has changed so much. Nostalgia can now inflict pains because going to the farm has become more dangerous and deadlier than suicide. This is one dreadful legacy this administration is going to bequeath to Nigerians.

    As it is, some top officials are throwing everything into the fire to do whatever salvaging is possible. So, it was with respectable aplomb and fait accompli that the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, announced in July this year, the implementation of a five per cent Excise Duty on telecommunications services.

    There was outrage. But it was the curse of the low hanging fruits. Industry bodies, the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), and the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), said this was one tax too many. There was already a 7.5 per cent VAT,  bringing the total to 12.5 per cent tax that the subscribers would have to pay. It would be an overkill for the subscriber, an overkill for the industry and even an overkill for the government that may enjoy some advantages in the immediate.

    History will record it as a pleasant surprise that an elite member of the ministerial coterie,  Dr Isah Pantami, whose rambunctious posturing has done so much damage to the telecommunications industry, has broken ranks to fight on the side of the industry. His remonstrations have led to a suspension of the 5 per cent Excise duty while also compelling the government to set up a committee to take another look at the decision.

    The minister’s position is very clear. You don’t need to strangle a front-line performer as a reward for good performance and efficiency. He observed that in spite of the tax overload being borne by the operators, the industry has continued to perform well.

    “Three unprecedented positive developments have occurred in the digital economy sector in the last three years. In the last quarter of 2020, ICT alone, without including digital services, contributed 14.70 per cent to the GDP. In the second quarter of 2021, we saw another record where the sector contributed 17.90 per cent to the GDP. The last record was in the second quarter of 2022 where ICT contributed 18.44 per cent to the GDP. By implication the sector has been contributing a lot to the GDP,” the minister stated.

    On this matter the minister is right and enjoys overwhelming support. What irks me a little bit is that the regulator of the industry, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), had enough material to defend the operators but I wouldn’t know how much it tried. Otherwise the minister didn’t need to get into the fray at all.

    In a 2020 research titled, A Compendium of Taxes, Levies and Fees by State Governments on Telecoms Operators in Nigeria and its Effect on the National Digital Economy, the regulator which sought tangible proofs of payments from the operators, was able to establish 41 sundry taxes in the basket of the operators with the minister of finance scheming to add even more.

    “The Telecommunications Operators in Nigeria reportedly pay more than 40 different taxes and levies to different Agencies of the Government at Federal, State and Local Government levels in Nigeria,” the report said.

    In talking about tax, I particularly like the researchers’ choice of K. Nightingale’s definition, which says: “A tax is compulsory contribution, imposed by Government, and while tax payers may receive nothing identifiable in return for their contributions, they nevertheless have the benefit of living in a relatively educated, healthy and safe society.”

    While one may observe here that some individuals and organisations do pay their taxes to the government, it is difficult to establish how much education is going on, and how healthy and safe the environment is. Universities are shut for nearly seven months and insecurity is pervasive and hovering at the fringes of a full blown war. What returns are the people and corporates getting from their taxes?

    The evils of multiple taxation were also clearly listed. The word, multiple, speaks well for itself. The researchers describe multiple taxation as follows: an income that is subjected to tax more than once, often by two or more different authorities in a way that may be unfair or illegal. Illegality and unfairness distinguish multiple taxation from double taxation.”

    A grim reality established by the research is that “the higher the taxes the higher the level of unserved areas – areas not covered by telecommunications services. It shows that taxes hinder the expansion of the telecommunications industry towards areas that are unserved and as a result might hinder the achievement of the digital economy.”

    Here is my little observation. It is in the nature of government to look for multiple channels to increase revenue; more so in a world where the global economy is challenged, and further exacerbated locally by installed incompetence in high places. But it is also the responsibility of the regulator to stand firm and defend the industry and its customers with available statistics. Otherwise, regulation only becomes an instrument of legitimised extortion.

  • A government and a regulator in difficult placement – By Okoh Aihe

    A government and a regulator in difficult placement – By Okoh Aihe

    A government should be concerned about demonstrable proof of performance, what the political savvy would call the dividends of democracy, for it to earn sustainability into the future. But where there are evidential reasons making performance impossible, the government should, at least, maintain structures inherited.

    This government does not enjoy this credit at the moment. What is most visible to the eyes is that everything is down to where they call rock-bottom. Life has become a nightmare and there is hardly anything reflective of a global standard. The government has created a demeaning standard for the nation and, if anything, they would wish for a homogenised lobotomy of the citizenry so that their failures and misdeeds would be clearly forgotten. Except there is supervening health challenges, the human brain hardly forgets, not when the body suffered the impairment of a failed system. The record books will be opened at some point and performance metrics released for all to see.

    Today, I will take a little strand of this administration by way of demonstrating how the the government undermines things that used to hold value for the people, including institutions. The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) came into existence on August 4, 1992. Decree 38 which gave birth to the regulator under the Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (rtd) administration, also charged it with the responsibility of introducing private broadcasting into the broadcast ecosystem, thereby permanently removing broadcast operations from the stranglehold of the various governments – Federal and States.  Such audacious decision by a military government has witnessed the birth of  a plurality of stations of different genres – radio, TV and DSTV – to the nation. Beyond expectations the stations, some of them very successful, have provided robust alternatives in terms of content and technology, that have proven difficult for government stations to rival.

    The NBC was an elite regulatory institution which initially had far better prospects than its other peer, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) until Engr Ernest Ndukwe turned things around for the latter from the year 2000. Under the various administrations, including some tough military rulers, the NBC did not only survive but it has also done very well, leaving quite an attractive legacy.

    Painfully the regulator has faced serious challenges in recent times. It is mired in unnecessary controversies and litigations while its authority over the broadcast industry has come under serious scrutiny. The legacy is threatened and people are  saying a prayer for its survival.

    Oh, the situation is not so bad? Let’s stimulate our memory. About a week before the NBC would hit the nation with surprise withdrawal of 53 licences because of inability to pay license fees, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and culture, while speaking at an MOU signing ceremony between Integrated Television Service Ltd (ITS) and NTA-Star Times had said that other broadcast stations in the country would soon be directed to migrate to the platform of ITS for signal distribution. For a start, GOTV would be asked to migrate immediately.

    That sounded right and quite something to celebrate except that such directive would be too perfunctory to be reasonable. Just a little history in addition to the one we already started would do. ITS and Pinnacle Nigeria Limited were licensed by the NBC as super signal carriers to play lead role in the Digital Switch Over (DSO) exercise in Nigeria. It means that ITS and Pinnacle would provide the digital platforms to carry broadcast signals for other operators anywhere in the country. The operators would direct their efforts and resources to content generation. Good intentions but the climb to the top of an iroko tree is not a very simple one, so goes the saying among my people.

    The readers of this column would attest to the fact that I am an apostle of the DSO exercise in Nigeria and would wish that the process succeeded from the day the first launch took place in Jos in April 2016. That has not happened as Nigeria lives outside the window of implementation, having missed the target twice, 2015 and 2020.

    The DSO was a cardinal programme for this administration which the Minister said was prioritised because of its multi-pronged capacity to generate jobs and reflate an economy that seriously needed help. Few months to the end of a government that has run the nation aground, Mohammed wants to embark on knee-jerk decision to fast track the process: direct GOTV and other stations to go on the platform of ITS. One other thing however, GOTV has a Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) license which will run out in a couple of years.

    Let this be stated. The Minister cannot force any station to take a business decision especially with the availability of choices. The broadcasters may be more interested in taking a ride with Pinnacle. Unfortunately, not even ITS and Pinnacle have the capacity to embark on reasonable signals carriage at the moment.

    Following the position of the Minister, Nigeria may at last be trying to fit the engine of a Formula 1 race car into a very small Volkswagen Golf car. Reason being that while ITS and Pinnacle have points of presence only in about seven states of the federation, GOTV has facilities in about seventeen states of the federation. The other broadcasters – AIT, TVC and Channels, among others, even have more. There is an observation here we have refused to make which is nothing but a positive.

    A significant development last week was the decision of the Federal High Court in Lagos which stopped President Mohammadu Buhari and the NBC from revoking the licenses of 53 operators for their failure to pay their renewal fees. It was an interim injunction granted to the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE); in the case before Honourable Justice Akintayo Aluko.

    It was the third case against the NBC just within months. In May, a Federal High Court in Lagos thrashed the 6th Edition of the Nigeria Broadcast Code for being ultra vires, incompetent null and void, and perpetually restrained the Commission from implementing it. In July, an Appeal Court sitting in Port Harcourt asked the NBC to make a determination in the programming sublicensing complaint between Multichoice and Metro Digital Licensing within 21 days. I will want to state here that I am yet unaware of a resolution of this particular case. There are many more ongoing litigations.

    The irony in the foregoing however, is that each case is self-inflicted. The nullification of the Code was consequent upon the discontent some people felt about the manipulation of the amendment. There can be ample evidence that some very powerful forces involved in the process had some conflict of interest they tried to service. The Metro case also emanated from some flaws in the Code, where one operator would try to build a business on the sweat of another organisation because the amended Code gives him the latitude to make a demand.

    I have been asked the question, whether the broadcasters were not supposed to pay their license renewal fees. My tacit answer is: yes they must pay. However the handling was like a fellow taking home firewood infested with ants: messy. There were so many ways to handle that regulatory process without attracting litigation. After all, I have seen a copy of the letter of appreciation the NBC sent to some operators after a presumed settlement, it didn’t seem the quarrel was to the death. So, what happened?

    Here are my observations, including the positive earlier speculated. The DSO is not making meaningful progress. Time has come for the Ministry and regulator to drop all latent personal interests, call a stakeholders crisis resolution meeting, and tap into the capacity available in the industry.

    The NBC must look for a way to enjoy some independence as a regulator because the walls have ears, as they say. People are aware of some of the drama that played out before the list of debtors was released. Most of the workers there are technically competent. They should be allowed to do their job without encumbrances. And finally, the NBC Act must be amended if the broadcast industry is to have a future.

  • MTN leads the way to a 5G world – By Okoh Aihe

    MTN leads the way to a 5G world – By Okoh Aihe

    The 5G technology is a big pie, a really big pie. Every country in the world wants to have a hand in it, especially those who have gone beyond the scramble for the daily grind of life. Some are front runners, doing their stuff on the fast lane. A whole lot are pretenders trying to break into the league of the big boys. But it is a league that brooks no pretences, a league that must be joined with demonstrable credentials, where execution of the rollout plan is the only certificate that guarantees valid entrance, at least, for those in the last mile end of the business.

    But the big boys, from the more developed countries of the world, are not always very free minded in admitting members into the league. So, they set all kinds of hurdles, not frontally any way but in a very subtle way, surrounding where and how an operator has to acquire equipment, to ensure they are not laced with espionage facilities. You know the world must be protected from itself but they hide their real intentions that the real fight is over who controls the technology, which really will become the strong global policeman of the future. Any country who controls 5G technology will in no time control the world.

    The 5G technology is a big pie which comes at a huge cost but the returns are even more frightening. 2020 GSMA Intelligence report – The Mobile Economy, projects that by 2034, the technology will contribute $2.2 trillion to the global economy. Something really huge and still booting, eh? Little surprise then that three companies in India are shelling out $19bn for Air wave or spectrum sales with Ambani’s Reliance Jio doling out $11bn of that amount, just to broach the 5G ecosystem. The other two are Bharti Airtel and Vodafone IDEA. Several billions will also be ploughed into the rollout phase which should happen as early as September this year. 5G is a game for the big boys who are ready to roll the dice without thinking of the consequences of the cost.

    Countries are railing against countries just to control 5G technology in terms of equipment vending and service rollout, while corporates are outbidding each other in order to have some good control of some attractive economies. But the technology will come at a cost that may only serve the interest of some data nerds.

    It is therefore heart warming that MTN Nigeria, has led the country to join this exclusive list of the big boys of the telecommunications industry when, last week, it rolled out 5G pilot services in three locations of the country, namely: Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt.

    Quite effusive about the development, the service provider said, “Today (August 24, 2022), MTN Nigeria Communications Plc (MTN Nigeria, or the Company) kicked off an open 5G pilot in the lead-up to its highly anticipated commercial launch.  The Company, which intends to launch 5G services in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Ibadan, Kano, Owerri, and Maiduguri, is testing the next-generation network infrastructure. Customers with certain enabled devices will be allowed to connect with and try out the new service where coverage is available.”

    The caveat however is that the service can only be received by some devices that are 5G enabled, and this was duly communicated. “To access the 5G network and enjoy its benefits, customers will need compatible devices, such as routers and mobile phones, which can be pre-ordered from designated MTN walk-in stores and online via the MTN Nigeria website and e-marketplace. The pre-ordered devices can be picked up or will be delivered to customers post the launch event scheduled to take place in the coming weeks,” MTN said in the statement.

    The game is on and before mid September the real deal will be unveiled to a nation that should have been fighting for a place at the top of the ladder but for the bungling attitude of the political class that has become an albatross. They make us look small in the eyes of the world.

    Nobody needs to be reminded that what is happening is truly epochal and some kind of piercing light in the thick of darkness where hopelessness has form and shape, you know, the way they describe matter in elementary science. The feat fires a can-do spirit which is one of the raw characteristics of the average Nigerian irrespective of the environment.

    Adia Sowho, Chief Marketing Officer, MTN, captured unfolding developments in the following words, cresting on 5G as the ultimate clincher. “Every major technological evolution redefines what is possible – changing the way we live and the way we connect. MTN Nigeria has been at the forefront of every leap in telecommunications: from GSM to 2G, 3G, and 4G. 5G has the potential to change everything. It will allow us to connect, create, collaborate, and compete in ways we’ve not even begun to imagine,”  she enthused.

    MTN Nigeria emerged one of the two  winners of the 3.5GHz spectrum auction conducted by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on December 13, last year. The other winner is Mafab Communications. 3.5GHz is the spectrum band for 5G technology. The auction picked at $273.6m per license.

    The licensees were given an August deadline to rollout services but all other rollout obligations were clearly stated in the Information Memorandum released before the auction. So, it will be factual to state here that every bidder, including Airtel, which listed an exit bid of $270m, didn’t go into the playing field with eyes blindfolded or arms tied behind. It was an open book which remains a regulatory strength of the Commission.

    From industry sources, it seems that MTN is ready to exceed expectations as per the rollout obligations which state as follows: Year 1 to 2 – Starting from the effective date of the licence. Rollout service in at least one State in each geo-political zone: SW, SS, SE, NC (Including FCT), NW and NE. From Year 3 to 5, additional 6 States other than those in Year 1 to 2, across the six geo-political zones, while from Year 6 to 10, Operators are encouraged to roll out across all other States.

    While one can call the rollout demands quite humble, it is clear to see that MTN is primed to meet all that and then position to cream off the high end of the business with an initial entry level of about 220 5G sites. As it was in the past, so it will always be. When the dust settles MTN will be far in front while others shout helplessly about monopoly practices.

    This writer can confirm that Mafab has been given a grace period within which to rollout services. Industry sources however also confirm that the licensee is in frantic search for investors to enable it to fulfil its license obligations. My sympathies are for Mafab. This administration has completely ruined the nation’s economy to the extentent that nobody will want to put serious money in an environment that looks seemingly hostile and failing fast.

    Funding a 5G operation is no child’s play. Operators in India are planning to invest between $15bn and $25bn each to cover the country’s market. Even for a nation, such money will be a challenge when you look at the antecedents of this government.

    Now our initial fears on this column are being justified, and this should be a regulatory lesson. The allegory of a David and Goliath doesn’t belong here. Such a humongous license shouldn’t be given to a rookie struggling for limelight. India has demonstrated this by awarding 5G licenses mainly to existing and established operators who are able to pay the license fees and rollout services immediately.

    Whatever it is, we stand with Mafab in its struggles. The organisation should be given time to rollout and not be troubled by any regulatory stipulations. After all, the 5G technology will be one of the few landmarks that this administration can point to as an achievement, and should not ruin it with its inability to read the future from a troubled present.

    For the time being, this government should be sincere enough to express gratitude to MTN for providing some tech grains it can point to in the future as a legacy.

  • For broadcasting, it’s the fire next time – By Okoh Aihe

    For broadcasting, it’s the fire next time – By Okoh Aihe

    There was a rash of contradictory responses last week, when the broadcast regulator, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), in a moment of regulatory frenzy, directed 52 broadcast operators to shut down operations and return their licenses within 24 hours if they couldn’t settle their debt of N2.6bn collectively owed the Commission as license fees.

    Prominent on the list are Daar Communications Plc, broadcasters of African Independent Television and Raypower FM, and Silverbird Communications Limited, broadcasters of Silverbird Television and Rhythm FM.

    This nation is so traumatised at the moment that nothing is nigh impossible or beyond belief. Nearly every day opens with some incredible happenings which unfortunately become banal in our surreal world. In one weekend, all of 52 stations were to shut down because of debts which they couldn’t obviously settle on a Saturday because banks don’t work on weekends.

    Director General of the Commission, Mallam Balarabe Shehu Ilelah, at a media briefing said the regulator is drawing its power from Section 10a of the National Broadcasting Commission Act CAP N11, which says that “A licence may be revoked by the Commission in the following cases, that is (10a) where the prescribed fee has not been paid on the due date.”

    On account of the foregoing, the Commission acted within its powers in order to recover its money. I have followed the conversation trail. Quite a number of people are in support of the NBC, saying the regulator was right to take a decision that could help its case positively. Broadcast operators must pay their license fees, they say. But there are others who are saying the decision is ill-timed and inconsiderate.

    While expressing its worries, the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), observed that the media houses have continued to play pivotal roles in the development and sustenance of democracy and “can’t just be taken off air no matter the reason.”

    “While the Guild is not against broadcast stations fulfilling their financial obligations to the NBC, we note that the current harsh operating environment that has crippled every sector in our nation was not taken into account by the NBC before its action.” The statement was signed by Messrs Mustapha Isah(President) and Iyobosa Uwugiaren (General Secretary).

    The Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), through its national chairman, Mr Chris Isiguzo, described the action as ill-advised, ill-timed and reckless.

    “While we regret the inability of these broadcast stations to fulfill their obligations to NBC, in-view of dwindling resources, we caution against such large-scale clampdown of broadcast stations in disregard to security issues and the attendant consequences.

    “We cannot afford the unpleasant outcome of such a media blackout at this time. We call on NBC to exercise more restraint on this issue in consideration of national security and allow for more dialogue and consultation to find a better way of dealing with the situation,” Isiguzo said.

    The Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) seeks more understanding with the affected stations arguing that while many businesses are shutting down as “a result of the current economic situation, Radio and Television stations remained on air at a loss, recognising the essence of prompt information in a precarious situation like ours.”

    The Radio, Television, Theatre and Arts Workers Union of Nigeria (RATTAWU), has condemned the NBC action, describing it as untimely and with grave consequences.

    Some other non-governmental bodies have also added their voices in such condemnation.

    So, one fateful weekend, NBC took a legitimate decision that has earned it more condemnation than commendation. If it is to name and shame, which seems to be the intention by the very fact that such huge decision was activated on a Friday,  the Commission probably achieved very little, as it has attracted more opprobrium to the industry as a sector spinning out of control, where every decision is ascribed more to a sinister, hidden hand than the regulator itself.

    Perhaps putting the swirl of reactions in more contemplative considerations, the Commission acted quickly to extend the grace period to Wednesday, the following week, which is today. It is expected that both industry and regulator would be able to look each other in the eye and come to acceptable decisions to all stakeholders.

    I feel sorry for the regulator because it is cumbered for cash, just like every other organisation or even individuals who are being blighted by a badly mismanaged economy. But so are the broadcast operators whose businesses encounter new challenges daily – no dollars for hardware, prices of diesel for generators have gone through the roof, economy so whittled that commercials come in trifles. What a world!

    But this is when regulation is important. The regulator is the bridge between so many stakeholders – industry, government and the market – viewers or audience or customers or subscribers as the case may be. The idea of regulation is to create a level playing field commodious for all interested parties to ply their trade without the usual government encumbrances. The regulator keeps secrets, lots of secrets to protect itself and other stakeholders. For this reason, the regulator is restrained in action, usually not in fits to swing the big hammer because the law empowers it to do so.

    Proponents of deregulation have been expanding its borders to accommodate evolving developments. Instead of the regulation that creates a level playing field, there are new words like agile or lithe regulation which appropriate unfolding industry, economic, government and other technology developments in taking decisions at the speed of light, but decisions so well considered that they bring peace to everybody involved.

    For instance instead of the usual revenue drive for which regulators are reputed, it is possible for the regulator to conduct a stress test for the industry to ascertain the health of the industry and how well it provides for the stakeholders. Remediation actions may then be taken to ameliorate risks and headaches in order to create a better industry. The truth is that the regulator can only enjoy some level of peace and comfort when the operators are doing well.

    In all this, the independence of the regulator is very important in order to insulate it from regulatory capture. It is only a truly independent regulator that can take actions without any pigmentation of bias. In the present tech ecosystem – broadcasting and telecommunications – in Nigeria, regulatory capture is more generous in painting an appropriate picture.

    I have looked at the list of  52 operators and have also discussed it with some industry operators and former regulators. They are surprised to see some names on the list of defaulters while also pointing at some others that should have been there but are not. What happened, they asked. I did not have the answer. Surprisingly, there are some state stations. Some industry sources are not comfortable with the fact that the regulator could not have effective discussions with the state governments and encourage them to pay up. That for them should have been a more preferred and respectable option. They suggested that the regulator would need to engage more with the industry in order to earn their trust.

    But here is my final take. The NBC is the only regulator of the broadcast industry and should take absolute control of regulatory activities. Such control includes a flexible understanding of developments in the broadcast ecosystem and the vicissitudes of the nation’s economy, in order to make decisions reflective of some level of humaneness and considerable circumspection.

  • Airtel gives digital nod to the African child – By Okoh Aihe

    Airtel gives digital nod to the African child – By Okoh Aihe

    Having been very fortunate at a point in life to be a pioneer staff in birthing the Research and Development Department of a major parastatal, with a brief to work closely with tertiary institutions and fund their research works that could foster major developments and innovation in the tech sector, I saw first hand the deplorable state and helplessness of some of our universities.

    I do not want to talk of understaffing, which was prevalent. I do not want to talk of the physical infrastructure, which was in a sorry state in nearly all the institutions visited. Each environment painted the metaphor of gloom, especially if you were fortunate to attend a Nigerian university in the 80s, when some of us had a real good time. And we thought we were suffering!

    In the midst of such dinginess our young ones looked happy, always very excited in trying to prove a point. Some did and really earned my respect. The lecturers, may God reward them for their steadfastness and resilience for developing the thick skin to work in, sometimes, extremely unpleasant environments.

    A friend who heard my story alerted me that the secondary schools were not any better, and that it was indeed a miracle that they could still provide candidates for the tertiary institutions. Stories from my alma mater and one other school where I had taught for two years before heading to the university, were enough to depress me – schools not having teachers and communities having to fund the provision of contract teachers or the enrolment figures of students really plunging to a depressing low. Since then it has been every man for himself, people coming together to scrounge for funds in order to facilitate some activities in these institutions.

    I was really, therefore, quite excited when I chanced on materials on a multimillion dollar partnership between Airtel Africa and UNICEF to scale up education across the continent. A page out of the Airtel Africa Sustainability Plan reveals that between 2021 and 2027, the organisation will spend $57m to spark digital learning across the continent. In Nigeria alone over 10,000 students are expected to benefit, from Lagos to Kano, and beyond. Twelve other countries will benefit from this windfall.

    A little drop in the ocean? No! Don’t be unkind to a good heart. The education sector in Nigeria is in serious crisis. Nothing exemplifies this better than the universities that have been shut for nearly six months. The strike counters say that an academic year has been lost. But it is more than that – the health of the students, the loss to the nation in terms of their contributions to socio-economic growth and the rot of disused infrastructure that are already in a very bad state. Airtel comes with a breather to a sector in desperate need of help. Although this comes at the junior level, I want to admit here that I fully subscribe to the aphorism, catch them young.

    A statement in the company’s website credits Airtel Africa, a leading provider of telecommunications and mobile money services in the continent, as the first African private sector partner to make a multimillion-dollar commitment to ‘Reimagine Education’, a global initiative launched by UNICEF in 2020, calling for public and private sector investment in digital learning  as an essential service for every child and young person across the globe.

    Pursuing a continental corporate social responsibility programme to give some disadvantaged African children quality education that will prepare them for life’s competition and struggles, Airtel pulled out the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4) which, in brief, states as follows: Ensuring lifelong learning opportunities for all, from early childhood to adult education; Ensuring equity, inclusion and gender equality; Ensuring effective learning and the acquisition of relevant knowledge, skills and competencies; and Ensuring the relevance of learning, in terms of vocational and technical skills for decent work as well as for global citizenship in a plural and interconnected world.

    Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Africa, Mr Olusegun Ogunsanya, says Airtel Africa is a business that is driven by the purpose to transform lives. “Our goal is to transform the lives of over one million children through education by 2027. We will achieve this through programmes and partnerships to connect schools to the internet, provide access to quality learning content and support the schools most in need,” Airtel stated in the document as an education goal.

    UNICEF estimates that by 2055, Africa will be home to one billion children under the age of 18, making Africa’s child population larger than any other continent. While in most parts of the world a large number of this demographic can drive economic growth and transformation, the case of Africa where youth unemployment rates are between 54 and 70 per cent, is unfortunately not so.

    Added to the above is the World Bank’s ‘learning poverty rate’ – the inability to read or understand a simple text by the age of 10, in sub-Saharan Africa, which stands at nearly 87 per cent, a situation that has obviously been compounded by COVID-19 pandemic which nearly saw 90 per cent of learners across Airtel African market drop out of formal education.

    Airtel says the situation is critical and must be addressed immediately to ensure that by 2030, 288 million people will not reach the age of 18 without basic proficiency levels in reading. The organisation is addressing this exploding problem through three focus areas, namely: Partnerships, Connectivity for education, ‘Adopt a School’ programme. “Where network services exist, we will work with schools to ensure they have the equipment necessary to connect to the internet,” Airtel says.

    “Digital learning is the gateway to equipping young people with the right skills  – skills that will support them to transition from learning to earning. We are delighted that Airtel Nigeria shares in this vision, and is helping to drive the process of scaling up internet connectivity for school children in Nigeria,” said Peter Hawkins, UNICEF Nigeria Representative.

    Formal education in Nigeria is facing overwhelming challenges. Insecurity is buffeting nearly all the zones of the country and in particular zones, education has been portrayed as haram, making it something forbidden. For this wrong headed appropriation of ignorance apropos modern education, a large number of children have been driven out of school.

    It is difficult to state who is doing more harm to education – Boko Haram (western education is forbidden) or the politician. The position of the former is well known but the politicians, in spite of their manifest avowal for quality education, a majority build classes, where they build at all, without chairs and teachers. What you see from the outside is a beautiful building without anything inside, a complete shell, like a body without a soul.

    The future of Nigeria’s children hangs on a perilous balance. While I want to formally thank Airtel for going above business to give a digital nod to the African child, I want to observe that the education sector in the country deserves a declaration of a state of emergency. University students have been at home for months while the politicians are campaigning for another term in office. In some parts of the North, education is not happening at all. And at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), schools have to be short hurriedly as part of the security measures to prevent attacks. How low can this country really sink?

    This nation needs the support of development partners to rejuvenate the education sector. And this is urgent. Those whose future was lubricated by the wealth of the nation should not lacerate the future of Nigerian children and youths with their fossilised reasoning and clueless approach to setting development goals for a world beyond the precincts of circumscribed imaginations. It is strength of character to admit failure and recalibrate for a better future.

    As a reliable development partner, Airtel has pledged to lift the Nigerian child from digital slum with a large financial vote. Other corporate bodies should be encouraged to throw in their little bit.

  • NBC and Fines: Is there still a National Assembly? – By Okoh Aihe

    NBC and Fines: Is there still a National Assembly? – By Okoh Aihe

    For the writer it can be a punishing ordeal to write on issues nobody seems to care about or looks the writer is totally ignored with his writings destined for a contemptuous place in the newspaper heap, until somebody with love for letters and reason climbs the stage.

    It can really be exhausting but to give up writing is no better alternative but an act of cowardice that shouldn’t be accommodated by any society in desperate need of deliverance from wickedness and misgovernance. There is so much happening in our nation that places a demand on people of conscience and goodwill to speak up.

    On the trending issue of the documentaries on insecurity and banditry by the BBC and Trust TV, we came to the eerie conclusion last week, that the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) would sanction broadcasters even on grounds of speculative guilt, irrespective of what the regulatory books say.

    The sanctions came immediately. Multichoice Nigeria Limited, with trade name DSTV, NTA-Startimes, TelCom Satellite Limited (TSTV) and Trust TV were fined Five Million Naira each; the first three for running a BBC documentary titled, The Bandit Warlords of Zamfara, while Trust TV featured a documentary, Nigeria’s Banditry: The Inside Story, on March 5, 2022.

    The documentaries, according to the sanction letter signed by the NBC boss, Mallam Balarabe Shehu Ilelah, glorified the activities of bandits  and undermined National Security in Nigeria. The weight of the sanction rested on three sections of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, 6th edition, namely: Sections 3.1.1, 3.12.2 and 3.11.2.

    For instance, Section 3.1.1 says, “No broadcast shall encourage or incite to crime, lead to public disorder or hate, be repugnant to public feelings or contain offensive reference to any person or organization, alive or dead or generally be disrespectful to human dignity,” while Section 3.12.2: “The broadcaster shall not transmit a programme that incites or is likely to incite to violence among the populace, causing mass panic, political and social upheaval, security breach and general social disorder.”

    This writer has spoken to a number of people, including some former leaders of the NBC, they all come with the opinion that they found no fault in the said documentaries. They pointed out that the Trust TV documentary ran since March 5, 2022, yet it is difficult to point to any documented evidence of any harm it has done in the public space. One may not want to dwell on these sundry opinions because, from all indications, there will be a cocktail of litigations from this action by the government. Condemnations are pouring in but there is a remote possibility that the leadership of the country may be accumulating invectives for an action he has no direct contribution to.

    The Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) responded to the fine by saying that the NBC even violated contents of its Code by not following the laid down procedure of imposing fine. The operators were not notified of any complaints against them nor were any queries issued before the fine.

    The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) and the Media Rights Agenda (MRA) have asked the government to rescind the fine. The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) have gone to court to request that the fine be declared arbitrary and illegal. The situation continues to boil over, calling attention to two documentaries that people hardly saw.

    Our conclusion in last Wednesday’s article titled, From Telecommunications to Broadcasting, Desperate Times Indeed,  was informed by two primary factors. One. The NBC had been directed to sanction the broadcasters by the Government. At least, the Minister, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said so. Two. The NBC has no right to disobey the Minister when such a directive is given. That is the position of the NBC Act apropos the Minister.

    The Power of the Minister to give directives is so important that it occupies a whole Section of the National Broadcasting Act Cap N11, 2004. It states: “Subject to the Provisions of the Act, the Minister may give the Commission directives of a general character relating generally to particular matters with regard to the exercise by the Commission of its functions under this Act and it shall be the duty of the Commission to comply with such directives.”

    Those who framed the Act didn’t have water in their mouth nor did they leave room for any equivocations. Since August 24,1992, when this Act was birthed as Decree 38, the authority of the Minister has remained unshaken for whatever reason.

    The Act is what emboldens this present Minister to always announce with unrestrained pomposity that the Government has directed the NBC on what to do when facing some regulatory challenges.

    The unfortunate irony is that the broadcasting industry has been deregulated since 1992 to welcome private investors, and this makes the industry a business, although the government still wants to have a leash on it and dictate the rhythm of growth and operations. The industry faces challenges as a result of such regulatory infractions. A number of the operators are exposed to varying degrees of debts owed to banks and individuals, because they wanted to invest in a business in their own country. It may not be appropriate to list some of them because, really, it is their private business!

    Since last week I have been asking myself and some friends who still spare some time out of their buckets of worries to engage with me, whether the National Assembly really exists in this nation, for her fortunes to witness such rapid degradation. In both houses – Senate and House of Reps, there are Committees on Information; what oversight do they give the broadcasting industry? Would it not be their responsibility to make interventions where the Act is obtuse? Why would they watch one man completely destroy an industry?

    I feel sorry for the staff of that Commission. I have known some of them since 1992, since when they got employed as junior staff. I have watched some of them grow and build capacity over the years as they gradually climbed the steps of the Civil Service. I can testify that they are not derelict in knowledge and commitment to duty. It is so painful to see these people look morose just because a certain politician has embarked on an exaggerated ego trip. Can’t they at least even get help from the National Assembly?

    One thing I can tell you. This is the worst of times for the workers of the NBC. But it is like a dress rehearsal for some more ominous things that may come in the days ahead. The outrage is about fines today, in the days and months ahead, leading to a very important election period, it may be something more pcatastrophic for the nation.

    There are all kinds of premonitions and very troubling suggestions about stations that may be shut before the elections. While these suggestions have no similitude in reality, it will be important to caution against arbitrary actions that could throw the nation into further distress. My advocacy here is for the health of the broadcasting industry and the overall health of the entire nation.

  • From Telecommunications to Broadcasting, Desperate Times indeed – By Okoh Aihe

    From Telecommunications to Broadcasting, Desperate Times indeed – By Okoh Aihe

    Although this government gives the impression that things are pretty cool in the country, there are some strands of activities which really magnify the desperation with which those in authority are trying to paper over the nastiness of the times.

    Two of them played out recently. At a stakeholders meeting in Abuja, the government announced that it was ready to introduce excise duty on telecommunications services in the country. The tax was pegged at 5 per cent for every one thousand Naira of recharge card purchased, for instance. You will still be charged even if you bought just N100 worth.

    In the broadcast sector, the government is spoiling for a fight with BBC and Trust TV for their coverage of terror activities in the northern part of the country which the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has described as a glamorisation of the bandits who are inflicting pain on the country. He informed the nation that the government has indeed directed the broadcast regulator, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to sanction the organisations.

    Very desperate times indeed. The meeting in Abuja is obviously a response to the failing fortunes of the economy which has been on a free fall. The airlines are shutting down and flight tickets within the country have soared beyond reason, international flights have nearly been shackled by cost, Emirates is reducing flights to Nigeria because it cannot remit money from the country because of Dollar scarcity, and you need over N700 to buy just a dollar; everything is going up, and in fact life has become so expensive and very meaningless, that the only tangible commodity across the nation is hopelessness.

    The Abuja meeting was more of an announcement than a stakeholders gathering although it actually provided opportunity to the service provider to table their protestations.

    Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof Umar Garba Danbatta, in his opening remarks, pointed to the Finance Act, 2020, which states clearly that “Telecommunications services provided in Nigeria shall be charged with duties of excise at the rates specified under the duty column in the Schedule as the President may by Order prescribe pursuant to Section 13 of the Act”. The regulator was only fulfilling a responsibility in facilitating an understanding among stakeholders so that they can maintain full compliance with government policy.

    The Nigeria Customs Service attended the meeting armed with the excise valuation of 5 per cent and payment schedule of the 21st day of every month. While the Ministry of Finance presented a draft Order awaiting the President’s signature. This Order may be cited as Customs and Excise Tariff, Etc. (Consolidation) Act Excise (Telecommunications Services) Order, 2022.

    From all indications it was fait accompli that the Telcos must pay that money. But is it the telcos really?

    You see, all over the world, the telecommunications industry suffers an industry curse, to the effect that the wealth and success of the industry easily exposes it to the various governments as low-hanging fruits that must easily be harvested to bridge revenue shortfall or gap. Nigeria is not an exception, except that the tax cocktail is overwhelming the industry to the point of inertia. The operators are nearly drunk with tax exaction and they complained about it very bitterly at the forum.

    Industry bodies, the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria ATCON) and the Association of Licensed Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ALTON) remonstrated bitterly, that: “We currently pay a lot of taxes, running into 39 of them, so we can’t add more to the existing burden. We won’t be able to absorb this on behalf of subscribers.”

    The tax must be passed to the subscribers, some of them still earning the minimum wage of N30,000, which is not paid regularly as monies coming into the federation account have been in staggering decline.

    The industry has received massive support from a rare corner. Speaking in Lagos at the Maiden Edition of The Nigerian Telecommunications Indeginous Content Expo, a furious Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, observed that the 5 per cent excise duty was one tax too many, while declaring that the industry could not  be taxed to death, having been very supportive of the nation’s economy. He admonished the government, which he is part of, to breathe more life into other sectors of the economy. It is a principled position that may yet declare the good part of Pantami in the face of a government whose debt burden is more than the revenue it generates.

    While Pantami got some much needed ovation in Lagos, same cannot be said for Alhaji Lai Mohammed who seems to have been angered by the BBC and Trust TV for giving bandits generous TV time. The government spokesperson has vowed to direct the NBC to deal with the two stations according to the laws of the land. His position has not enjoyed salutary acceptance by some other stakeholders of the broadcast industry.

    I have had to spend some time watching the two documentaries – The Bandit Warlords of Zamfara by BBC and Nigeria’s Banditory ‘The Inside Story’ by Trust TV. From one journalist to another, I have loads of appreciation for the daring enterprise and creativity of the teams involved in the projects. What has long been suspected was confirmed with visual reality and exactitude. The bandits are no apparitions and they don’t live in space. They have their locations, they have neighbours and friends and even their victims know where they live and their pattern of migration.

    I know that sometimes the truth told at a time a government is in trouble could be very unnerving and particularly irritating. But looking at those pictures no matter how disheartening,  I see positives. For instance, they tell stories with lavish pictures. What advantage can the government squeeze out of these works? What engagements need to happen for security efforts to enjoy some traction, and even in terms of pursuing a negotiated resolution? How can the government squeeze out some positive advantages from the documentaries instead of blanketing them as stage-managed flagellations. You can see that I am not interested in saying that if those who made the documentaries could access the bandits in their locations, what makes it so difficult for the Nigerian security forces to do the same?

    But can the NBC go after BBC and Trust TV because the government has directed it to? I have tried to speak to some broadcasters and they couldn’t provide me with any comforting answer. For instance I watched the BBC documentary on YouTube. Some are of the opinion that the NBC cannot punish YouTube for curating a programme.

    This is what I think. Confronted with a multiplicity of problems across the nation, the government is getting too desperate to sift solutions out of a maze of challenges. So will this government impose 5per percent excise duty on telecommunications services? I believe it will do so no matter how much we cry because a government operating on net zero really doesn’t care so much. But the subscribers will have to cough it out.

    Will this government punish the BBC and Trust TV for spilling the inconvenient truth? I believe it will for the simple reason that a government in this kind of position, of near epidemic hatred by the people, will always see the acceptance of hurtful truth and reality as manifest weakness. Unfortunately, quite a number of people who watch TV today do so on their phones, iPad or tablets or even computers. With a little network coverage and data subscription, the subscriber will have express permission to as many TV channels as possible.

    This is where control is difficult and nebulous punishment uncharible. Instead stakeholders should always seek ways to squeeze opportunities out of increasing challenges. Truth be told, development in the tech sector – telecommunications, broadcasting and other emerging technologies – far exceeds human cognition, cogitation and comfort. Control, I say, is difficult, especially if such a package carries a truth.

  • What will the NBC do now? – By Okoh Aihe

    What will the NBC do now? – By Okoh Aihe

    The place between the hammer and the anvil is not a good place to be at all. No little moment of comfort but always, a foreboding thought of a lingering crush or disaster. A hammer that may come down and do serious damage, yes, even very serious damage.

    So, when an organisation finds itself in a very conflicting but potentially dangerous situation, that organisation has ended up between the hammer and the anvil and has to deploy every trace of ingenuity to achieve escape or get the situation resolved. Unfortunately, resolution could come with more challenges.

    A little story is unfolding that has placed the National Broadcasting Commission ((NBC), the regulator of the broadcasting industry, between the hammer and the anvil, and I don’t envy it at all. You may say it has been quiet over there but that quietness is growing into a gathering cloud that may not recognise the wizardry of a rain maker.

    An Appeal Court sitting in Port Harcourt, last week, directed the NBC to address the programming sublicensing complaint filed against Multichoice Nigeria Limited by Metro Digital Limited. Both organisations are licensees of the NBC. The judgment made on July 13, 2022, gave the NBC 21 days within which to call the disputing parties to the round table.

    For me, the broadcasting industry is getting very interesting as the resolution of this case could go a long way to determine how business is done in the industry. It will affect the depth of competition. It will affect content development and ownership. It will teach us to watch out for mischief and act very spontaneously once a document is being done, and some smart fellows are throwing in some hidden traps. In fact it will add some accoutrement to the definition of deregulation in the business dictionary.

    It may help our understanding to sort the condiments in this complex broth. May 25, 2022, a Lagos High Court gave one Mr Femi Davies judgement against the NBC, in which case Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa completely thrashed the 6th edition of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, describing as ultra vires, incompetent null and void, and therefore perpetually restrained the Commission from implementing it.

    In responding to a major complaint against the Code, Justice Lewis-Allagoa said,  “I agree with the submission that acquisition of exclusive rights to Broadcast a particular program is an investment for returns and by virtue of the above-stated provisions, no one should be forced to surrender same when it is lawfully acquired…”

    For most industry followers, the 6th edition of the Code had suffered expected demise, a reincarnation was not plausible.

    Meanwhile there was a residual case in Port Harcourt, where Metro Digital Limited had gone to a Federal High Court with a prayer that the NBC examine its complaints against Multichoice on programme sublicensing. June 18, 2021, the company lost the case presided over by Honourable Justice A.T. Mohammed.

    Metro went on appeal, and the wheel of justice began to grind slowly. July 13, 2022, the Court of Appeal set aside the judgment of the lower court with the following consequential order:

    A declaration that the continued failure of the 2nd Respondent, as a regulatory body, to issue directives on the complaint of dispute by the Appellant after receipt of the complaint is a breach of its statutory duty and has resulted in the continued unjust/unfair denial/frustration of the appellant’s business and infringement of the Appellant’s rights.
    An order of mandatory injunction is issued to compel the 2nd respondent to issue directives on the appellant’s complaint against the 1st respondent pursuant to the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, 6th Edition (as amended). The 2nd respondent shall initiate the process for the determination of the dispute between the appellant and the 1st respondent within 21 days of the date of this judgment, under the auspices of the NBC Act, the 6th edition of the NBC Code and its addendum.

    The deregulation of broadcasting in Nigeria in 1992 which invited the participation of private investors made broadcasting a business. While there is open broadcasting, the free to air terrestrial transmission, there are others who offer bespoke services, packaging premium programming to titillate the esoteric taste of  individuals financially placed enough to subscribe to those programmes.

    A certain genre of broadcasting demands cutting edge creativity and painstaking agglomeration of rich but diverse contents for sustained retention of subscribers. Such programming is subject to variegated purchasing, leasing and transmission agreements. Globally, not so many organisations are able to play at this high end of broadcasting, thus leading to a situation where some broadcasters will press for a sublease. Fortunately or unfortunately, intellectual property enjoys a lot of protection from local and international laws, and such protection suffers no ignorance.

    When the 6th edition of the Code was being made, quite a few observations were made by those who thought they knew a little thing about local and international broadcasting, raising the alarm that what seemed to be predetermined and personal interests were being laced into the contents. Those who had the knife and the yam continued in their obstinacy.

    Now a smart organisation has secured the support of the Appeal Court to compel the NBC to put the contents of the  Code to test. A source familiar with the details of the case told this writer that Metro Digital Limited is asking for a sublicensing of about 27 channels from Multichoice Nigeria Limited. And broadcasting is a business! This may not be the case of one man preparing pounded yam on the basis of another man’s pot of soup. The NBC which has been boxed into a corner by very powerful interests since the coming of the Buhari administration, will now have to make a determination.

    Without any aspiration to trading places, the NBC has found itself between the hammer and the anvil. My prayer is for God to give its officials the wisdom of Solomon.

    For Eyza, story from a Life 

    Eyza Trissa Anga has started her journey very early, quite unexpectedly, leaving behind a smile that beautifies life. When her friends from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and members of House on the Rock Church gathered at the Church auditorium on July 15, 2022, in Abuja,  it was to wish her a safe journey to that world of no return where she would have to live at peace with her creator forever.

    The video wall magnified that bewitching and encouraging smile which remained her winning trademark. Eyza worked at the NCC but she was the  kind of a young lady every boss wanted to have in his or her team because she would get the job done, without a squint or wrinkle.

    The Pastor who gave a charge put the story very succinctly. “Only God knows how to create a life and tell a story out of that life.” Eyza’s brief stay with us is a great story of a lifetime, and also quite humbling because most people couldn’t believe that all the testimonials were for the young girl smiling down at all of us. She carried an internal pain which eventually abridged her life. Eyza never showed it. Instead she conquered that pain with a smile, large heart and goodwill.

    That night Eyza taught us how to live life. This is why I encourage her husband, family and the NCC to be happy that such a large heart and a beautiful soul came their way. The good is hardly interred, Eyza. Go well.

  • SNB Bill, good idea begging for understanding and moderation – By Okoh Aihe

    SNB Bill, good idea begging for understanding and moderation – By Okoh Aihe

    A seemingly innocuous document, designed in the form of a Bill to accentuate the beauty and brilliance of the broadcast profession suddenly gained traction penultimate week when the House of Representatives at the National Assembly, called a Public Hearing to put its contents to test. Like everything broadcasting that cannot be hidden, the bill exceeded expectations in terms of quantum submissions, interventions and disagreements.

    Authored since 2017, the document called The Society of Nigeria Broadcasting Professionals Council Bill, 2017, has been going through legislative processes until the critical stage of a Public Hearing, wherein the Speaker of the House, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, announced the Bill as seeking legislative backing to enable the Society of Nigeria Broadcasters  bring together,under one fold, all the broadcast professionals for better performances through various development measures.

    The Public Hearing appeared only to be the springboard. By the following week, there was a frenzy on television with the various parties canvassing their position on the Bill. In the open there are two parties, those promoting the Bill and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), the regulator of the broadcast industry, which seems very uncomfortable with the word, regulation associated with the Bill and other contents of the document that potentially look dubious.

    Listening to elucidations from broadcast aficionado and former director general of the NTA, Prof Tony Iredia, the Bill comes in peace with all its good intention to bring glory days to the broadcasting profession through training, career development programmes and mentorship, among others. Prof Armstrong Idachaba, former interim director general of the NBC, doesn’t really disagree with Iredia except that he holds the opinion that some sections of the Bill are superfluous in an industry where you already have the regulator. Also, another former director general of the NBC, Bayo Atoyebi is calling for a detente, saying the parties can sit down to harmonise the Bill for the industry’s good.

    For House speaker, Gbajabiamila, “the Society of Nigerian Broadcasters will contribute to the growth of the broadcast industry by serving as advocacy for the broadcast industry.”

    Do the broadcasters need a law to perform responsibilities they have carried out so well even pre independence and the troubling days of the military? There are other silent voices at the background which hold the view that something needs to be done to expose the profession to a new height of excellence but are calling for restraints in certain demands “because the fact that you have sent a Bill to the National Assembly does not necessarily mean the Bill will come out the same way!”

    Oh more like the words of Prof Ola Rotimi, in his epic play, Kurunmin, saying, “the cow gave birth to a child but she could not lick it because it was fire.” This third group warns that the Bill could spiral out of the scope and permutation of the proponents.

    The Bill says: There shall be established a body to be known as the Society of Nigeria Broadcasting Practitioners Council (in this Act called the Council) which shall comprise of Society of Nigeria Broadcasting Practitioners of the highest distinction in the broadcasting profession in Nigeria.

    Here are some of the general responsibilities: Formal admission, certification and registration of persons seeking to become Society of Nigeria Broadcasting Practitioners; Prescribing, determining and setting the standards of knowledge and skills to be attained by persons seeking to become members of the broadcasting profession and reviewing those standards from time to time; Regulating and controlling the conduct of the broadcasting profession; To make regulations for the smooth administration and management of the Council and profession from time to time; To endorse the establishment, incorporation or adoption of a single unified body or association for broadcasters which all broadcasters shall belong upon being registered and which shall serve to represent and coordinate the interest of all professional broadcasters in Nigeria.

    The Council also seeks to establish an institution for the certification of professional broadcasters. Good intentions except for the hidden mines in the innocent wordings of the Bill which others are quick to point out.

    One observation here. The Bill comes in the life of this administration and that speaks volumes which is summarised by Iredia in the following words: “There is political manipulation at the top which we are trying to stop.”

    To further break this down, apart from trying to improve the fortunes of the broadcasting profession and the industry, the broadcasters are simply responding to the regulatory capture which has befallen the broadcasting industry since the advent of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration. Since the NBC was established in 1992, never has there been such meddlesomeness by any administration in the operations of the Commission, to the extent that some of its functions have been subterraneanly intercepted by the Ministry of Information and Culture.

    Prof Iredia is also canvassing for the broadcasters to regulate themselves while the NBC should carry out its primary function of issuing licenses to those who want to venture into the business of broadcasting. The Bill readily points to the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).

    Like a party in a dogfight, the NBC argues that there is already a regulatory body in the industry which has the capacity to handle some of the fears raised by the proponents of the Bill. Apart from processing licenses for applicants, the NBC says the NBC ( National Broadcasting Commission Act, Cap. N11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria , 2004) also empowers it to carry out the following responsibilities: Regulating and controlling the broadcasting industry; and Establishing and disseminating a national broadcasting code and setting standards with regard to the contents and quality of materials for broadcast.

    While acknowledging the desirability of the Bill, the NBC made suggestions on possible modification of name, and also referenced the NBA and the NMA on what it feels appropriate and accommodated by the NBC Act.

    A particular document this writer is privy to noted that like the NBA,NSE and NMA, there are several self-regulatory associations and societies but their establishing statutes don’t portray them essentially as regulatory agencies. They indeed liase with a statutory regulatory agency.

    A very respectable voice in the industry is of the opinion that the broadcasters and the regulator don’t need the politicians to meddle in the relationship between them, otherwise the politicians might squeeze out some advantages for their efforts to the pain and shame of the industry.

    I agree with that elder of the industry. I am also of the opinion that the broadcasters can do anything to boost the quality of their trade without waiting for politicians to make laws for them. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), which was formed in Chicago in 1922, is a trade association and lobbying group which represents more than 8, 300 terrestrial radio and television broadcasters in America. NAB is not a product of the law but of the industry. The association is so successful that every year, it gathers the broadcast world in Las Vegas for the NAB Conference and Exhibition where pace and tempo are set for the industry in terms of knowledge and hardware. The Nigerian broadcasters know this, because some of them go to Vegas if only to espy the direction of the industry.

    Some of the big broadcasters in the country today started their trade from the FRCN Training School in Lagos and the TV School, Jos. Pray, why can’t our broadcasters revamp the institutions with state of the art facilities and position them as some kind of finishing schools? There is still so much talk about going to BBC training school; I am pressed to think that our broadcasters have earned enough epaulets to do even better without searching for any law to help them.

    Except there is any other intention behind the SNB Bill, I suggest that the NBC and the broadcasting industry operators should conference together to resolve whatever lingering issues that can encumber that Bill so that broadcasting can enjoy the advantages arising there from. I actually believe that the NBC has been in so much trouble in the past seven years that it needed help from the industry  to help canvas for a free regulator instead of pushing it deeper in the mire.

  • Atiku finds a place in telecoms history – By Okoh Aihe

    Atiku finds a place in telecoms history – By Okoh Aihe

    It was my friend’s day last week, July 7, 2022. Aaron Ukodie, Arumata, as l call him with fond love, excavated a piece of telecoms history and burnished it into the nation’s telecoms walk of fame, that will outlive all of us, even those who pray to live forever. 

    One of the very few pedantic guys in the journalism profession who is given to sustained scholarship, Ukodie released yet another book on the telecommunications industry, titled: Nigeria Drivers of Digital Prosperity. This is not a review of the book, which will come with time but I salute his tenacious spirit and such a selfless commitment to force a reading culture on a people that are mostly discomfited by unhealthy politics and epidemic misgovernance.

    The beauty of non-fictive work is its capacity to be contentious while equally yielding opportunities for verifications. The constellation of faces at the event is a validation that Ukodie has attributed honour to those deserving apart from a few faces that were obviously interlopers and of little consequence to the industry as far as history is concerned. 

    The story of telecoms growth in Nigeria which Ukodie will not let go, is an emotional one. Those born after 2001 and grew up to the fancy of mobile phones would not know that for years Nigeria’s telecoms industry was compared to the worst in the world; people who were not fortunate and rich enough to own a table phone (and there were less than 350, 000 for the nation’s huge population),  went to stay in NITEL offices across the nation to make or receive international calls. We lived with that situation and lived with so many governments who didn’t know what to do about the sector and truly held the people down to Stone Age practices. 

    One day the story changed. Events from 1999 preceded this. One of those on ground to unveil Ukodie’s book was Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) who was hailed in the book for being a primary player in the events leading to an industry tipping point in 2001. 

    Speaking through Barrister Uyi Giwa-Osagie, Atiku who thanked Ukodie for giving him a place in the chronicles of the telecoms industry, recalled the times leading to a groundswell of growth in the industry, adding that it is possible now to take the industry to the next level of growth. As Vice President and head of the economic team which included some of the best brains Nigeria offers the world, Atiku witnessed first hand the fruits of modern telecommunications technology and its transformative capacity in the life of a nation. 

    In his words, “The evolution of the country’s ICT and telecoms industry, started with the GSM which was launched in August 2001 under our administration, and has since revolutionized the face of ICT in Nigeria. In February 2002, I inaugurated a 22-member Telecommunications Sector Reform Implementation Committee, aimed at increasing access to phone services for Nigerians, primarily through the GSM, and further facilitated all necessary licensing for GSM to come into effect in Nigeria. This is an achievement I am entirely proud of and further reinforces my credentials as a digitally inclined leader, aware of revolutions that need to take place for our country to move forward and reach her full potential.”

    He confessed that “as a leader, I have seen first hand the significant impact digital technology creates across the different sectors of our economy, and the endless opportunities that remain untapped.  On this continuous journey, I feel a responsibility to continue to support Nigeria and the young people of Nigeria, on its digitization agenda, and this forms a core part of my campaign promise and delivery to the Nation, in my current quest to be the next President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, come May 29, 2023.”

    This was the peg line for most of the stories that were published from that event. It is my opinion that track records are important. They become more ennobling if the holder initiated a process which with more understanding, he further wants to consolidate. The problem with us is that quite a number of people canvassing for public office have little to point to apart from an entitlement mentality or just to fulfil an ambition that invalidates other people’s pride and claim to humanity.

    One other significant development for me was Atiku’s profuse acknowledgment of the contributions of other people who made up the team, unlike most other politicians who think every achievement is traced to their might and brilliance. He demonstrated that he is a team player with a knack to mobilise rich human resources to achieve results. He readily commended the role of the regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and a number of the industry players who were in that hall.

    Engr Ernest Ndukwe was in the hall. The man who eventually earned the sobriquet, Mr GSM (by the way, GSM means global system for mobile communications), told a gathering at a programme in Abuja in October last year, that Atiku had a hand in his appointment as the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the NCC and also created such a perfect working relationship for the Commission to flower into a growth that would attract the envy of the world. Atiku was at that event in Abuja as well and his repartee jolted memories of a period in history that landmark achievements could easily be pointed to. 

    Dr Emmanuel Ekuwem, Secretary to the Government of Akwa Ibom who was an industry player at the time also answered the call by Ukodie. Each time we needed to canvass deep knowledge of the industry, each time we needed somebody to bring simple understanding to tech lingos, Ekuwem was there as a ready resource personality. 

    So it is a little bit nauseating for me that so much  invectives flow in the social media and Atiku attracts quite a percentage, which is plainly ironic. Here you have a man who played a primary role in instigating a process that put mobile phones in the hands of his people becoming a victim of a system that would fail progressively, as governments come and go.

    I do not expect the younger generation to understand the emotions that swirl inside me. But I remain grateful to former President Olusegun Obasanjo and his vice, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar for their unselfishness in bringing life and growth to the telecommunications sector. It was shameful at the time, really embarrassing to travel to a remote part of the world and be unable to communicate with people at home. 

    It is not only personal communications that were enabled. Their effort provided an enabling superstructure to carry the rest of the industries, whether manufacturing, engineering, construction, banking, entertainment, hospitality business, ticketing for road, rail and air travels, social relationships and in fact in nearly every strand of life. Telecommunications affect them all. 

    We were never part of the global telecoms story except when consigned to failure. The lethargy and official myopia in high places now also enjoyed preponderance pre 1999 when the base for a change of story was gradually erected. My little appeal is that when you hold that little tool – mobile phone – in your hand and you plan to do evil with it, always be constrained by the fact that those who brought it to Nigeria meant well.