The Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) strongly condemns the directive by Niger State Governor, Mohammed Bago, to revoke the licence of Badeggi FM Radio and shut it down. This action represents a grave assault on press freedom and a direct contravention of the Nigerian Constitution.
The Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Bologi Ibrahim, in a statement issued on Friday, 1 August, said the governor gave the directive to close the privately owned radio station, revoke its license, and profile its owner.
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Following the governor’s illegal directive, the state government has also marked the building housing the radio station and its management for demolition.
The CJID views this rather worrisome directive of the governor as an act of executive overreach and an outright abuse of state powers. As noted by the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, the responsibility to regulate and revoke the license of a broadcast station rests exclusively with the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and not on a state governor.
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This incident is part of a disturbing pattern of intimidation against journalists by the Niger State government under the Governor Umaru Bago-led administration documented by the CJID’s Press Attack Tracker, including the November 2023 assault on a Voice of America reporter, Mustapha Batsari, and the repeated detention of the People’s Daily correspondent in January and April 2025 by the state security apparatus.
The governor’s action is a predictable escalation in a state that already ranks a dismal 11th on the recently launched CJID Subnational Openness Index, highlighting its status as one of Nigeria’s hostile environments for journalists and independent media.
The unilateral order by the governor constitutes an attack on the right of the people of the state to be informed and the right of the broadcast station to carry out its lawful duties of informing the public. Any grievances against the station’s content or alleged unethical conduct should be directed to the National Media Complaints Commission (NMCC), otherwise known as the National Ombudsman or to the NBC through the proper legal channels.
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These systematic attacks create a climate of fear, aiming to silence critical voices and prevent the press from fulfilling its constitutional duty to hold the government accountable. Using state security agencies to harass the media is a diversionary tactic from pressing issues, including the pervasive insecurity ravaging the state.
CJID demands that Governor Bago immediately rescind the unlawful directive against Badeggi FM. We call on the Commissioner of Police and the Department of State Services (DSS) in Niger State to reject illegal orders and cease the harassment of journalists. A free press is not an adversary to a functioning government; it is a fundamental pillar of democratic accountability.
Signed,
Busola Ajibola,
Deputy Director, Journalism Program,
Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID)
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