The Federal Government on Thursday vowed to punish the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Daily Trust over what it called the unprofessional airing of different documentaries that glorified and capable of fuelling terrorism in Nigeria.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed made the position known in Abuja.
He said the Federal Government has taken note of ‘’the unprofessional documentary by the BBC, Africa Eye, where interviews were granted to bandit warlords and terror gangs, thereby promoting terror in the country’’.
Mohammed, however noted that the industry regulator, the Nigeria Broadcasting Commission had been notified about the 2 incidents for appropriate action to be taken.
Continuing, the minister said: “Let me assure you that they will not get away with the naked glorification of terrorism and banditry in Nigeria.
“If they are not registered in Nigeria and they are only sending their signals to Nigeria, we will ask them to stop sending the signals, pure and simple. Because I know that during the IRA days, the BBC will not dare do what they are doing now in Nigeria.
“Media is the oxygen that terrorists and bandits use to breathe.
“When otherwise reputable platforms like BBC can give their platform to terrorists showing their faces as if they are Nollywood stars, it is unfortunate.
“I want to assure them that they will not get away with it, appropriate sanctions will be meted to both the BBC and the Daily Trust.
“It is because there is a country called Nigeria that they are operating here.’’
