The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has threatened to slam sanctions on telecoms companies in the country who engage in running political ads without getting approval from the commission.
The Director of Public Affairs, Nigerian Communications Commission, Mr. Tony Ojobo said NCC will sanction mobile network operators for violating rules and regulations guiding their operations.
Concerning accusations by the opposition party, Ojobo said NCC did not err in shutting down the SMS platform, given that the mobile network operator in question ran foul of section 3 of NCC’s guidelines, by not applying officially to the Commission for approval, in accordance with section 3 of the NCC’s Act.
He quoted the section as saying: “The Commission shall receive written notification from the licensees for all advertisements for goods and services within a minimum of seven days of the proposed or planned publication of an advertisement, in order to ensure such advertisements meet the minimum standards and requirements.”
He said: “In 2010, the Commission, based on applications received across party lines, had granted codes for use by political parties to raise funds as well create awareness.
“We feel a need to clarify certain issues circulating in the press, especially in the light of inquiries we have been receiving in the last few days. Prior to Monday, January 19, 2015, the Commission was inundated with complaints from several subscribers to the effect that they were receiving messages from network operators to vote one political party or the other.”
