NBA Condemns Closure of Radio Station, Demands Bago Withdraw Unconstitutional Order

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has strongly condemned the directive issued by the Governor of Niger State, Mohammed Umaru Bago, ordering the immediate shutdown of Badeggi FM 90.1, a privately owned radio station based in Minna.

According to a statement released by the NBA President, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN, the directive, which was reportedly carried out through the state’s Commissioner of Police and Commissioner for Homeland Security, also includes alleged plans to profile the station’s owner and mark its premises for demolition.

FCNN gathered that the NBA described the action as “executive rascality of the highest order,” declaring it a gross abuse of power and a direct assault on constitutional democracy and the rule of law. The association emphasized that the Governor has no legal authority to revoke broadcasting licenses or shut down media organizations, as that power rests solely with the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), which is empowered to regulate broadcasting in Nigeria through due process.

“It is imperative to state that the Commissioner of Police or any security agency must not act on unlawful executive directives,” the NBA cautioned, adding that security forces are bound by law to operate within constitutional limits and must not serve as tools of political suppression.

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Citing Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the NBA reaffirmed that freedom of expression including the right to own and operate media is a guaranteed right, not a privilege. The association stressed that no official, regardless of rank or office, has the legal right to arbitrarily restrict media operations without lawful justification or judicial backing.

The statement went further to affirm the following positions:

Governor Bago’s directive is unlawful and has no legal effect.

Security agencies must not execute illegal orders that violate constitutional rights.

Media regulation must be conducted through established statutory frameworks not through arbitrary decisions.

The actions taken against Badeggi FM are an affront to press freedom and democratic principles.

The NBA therefore called on Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago to immediately withdraw the unlawful directive, urging all tiers of government to uphold the rule of law, respect constitutional limits, and protect press freedom as a fundamental pillar of Nigeria’s democracy.

“A free and independent media is not a privilege,” Osigwe concluded, “it is a constitutional right and a cornerstone of any democratic society.”