Nigerians have taken to social media to pour their disapproval over the decision of the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation, NBC, to suspend the broadcasting license of Daar Communications PLC, the parent company of both Raypower and AIT.
NBC had on Thursday night announced the suspension of the media organisation for allegedly breaching the broadcasting code.
However, stakeholders said that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is fighting to stifle public opinion and free speech.
Those who reacted to the shutdown include the presidential and vice presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the 2019 general elections, Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi; Senator Shehu Sani; Femi-Fani Kayode and others.
They called on NBC to rescind its decision as free speech is part of democracy.
The suspension of the licenses of AIT and Ray Power stand condemned. It is an affront on the freedom of the press, and of speech as enshrined in our constitution. It is a throwback to the years of military dictatorship. -PO
— Peter Obi (@PeterObi) June 7, 2019
BREAKING: We have carefully reviewed the 'grounds' for suspending AIT and Raypower. We maintain that the indefinite suspension by @nbcgovng is arbitrary and blatantly illegal. The ban must be lifted immediately. @MBuhari @ProfOsinbajo @UNHumanRights @UN_SPExperts
— SERAP (@SERAPNigeria) June 7, 2019
The suspension of @AIT_Online is an utterly condemnable act.The suspension is politically motivated.Its an act of ingratitude & treachery to strangulate the very media outlet that has played a pivotal role in the struggle for the restoration and defense of democracy.
— Senator Shehu Sani (@ShehuSani) June 6, 2019
AIT shut down!
I warned Nigerians in 2015 and I was maligned and hated for it. I warned Nigerians in 2019 and I was ignored, despised and ostracised for it. Even now Nigerians still don't know the nature of the monster that plagues and afflicts them. The worst is yet to come.
— Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) June 6, 2019
I stand for #PressFreedom. If the press isn’t free, it means Government therefore possesses more power over her citizens than it needs to have. #AITUnderSiege
— Ben Murray-Bruce (@benmurraybruce) June 6, 2019
"Elected autocrats subvert democracy by packing & weaponizing the courts, compromising neutral agencies, buying off or silencing the media, bullying the private sector & rewriting rules of politics."
How Democracies Die#NigeriaSupremeCourt #AITUnderSiege
Who/what is next?— Ayisha Osori (@Naijavote) June 6, 2019
This act of aggression against @AIT_Online is only possible because men of God, Like Pastor Kumuyi, refuse to speak and instead ask those who will speak not to “attack” a government that attacks our liberty. That is how they kept quiet under Abacha #ReturnToDictatorshipInNigeria
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) June 6, 2019
I am a lifelong democrat and throughout my political life, I have championed the principles of Separation of Powers. The Legislature has been challenged. The Judiciary has been tackled.
— Atiku Abubakar (@atiku) June 6, 2019
Closure of AIT signifies dark days ahead. Our right to free speech is next. Regulators now competing to consciously destroy businesses and jobs on flimsy grounds.
— Atedo Peterside (@AtedoPeterside) June 6, 2019
CLOSURE of AIT: Those doing this are repeating their history; those applauding it are writing their history…#RevolutionNow
— Omoyele Sowore (@YeleSowore) June 7, 2019
The @OfficialPDPNig condemns, in its totality, the unrelenting attempt by the @OfficialAPCNg controlled federal government to cage the media as being witnessed in the ferocious attacks on @AIT_Online by government agencies, particularly the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) pic.twitter.com/q7h0SLnmYM
— Official PDP Nigeria (@OfficialPDPNig) June 6, 2019
Why this ban on @AIT_Online?..a wise govt learns to tolerate opposition.intolerance is anti-democratic..now they are going to make AIT more popular.when you attack your critics,you amplify their voice.
— Apst Johnson Suleman (@APOSTLESULEMAN) June 7, 2019
