The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has imposed a fine of N5 million on Trust Television Network (Trust TV) over the broadcast of the documentary titled “Nigeria’s Banditry: The Inside Story”, which was aired by the station on 5th of March, 2022.

The Trust TV management, in a statement on Wednesday, disclosed that the NBC gave a notification of the fine in a letter to the company, dated August 3, 2022, and signed by its Director General, Balarabe Shehu Illela.

According to the letter, the fine was imposed on Trust TV because its broadcast of the said documentary contravened sections of the National Broadcasting Code.

The statement by the management of Media Trust Group read in part: “While we are currently studying the Commission’s action and weighing our options, we wish to state unequivocally that as a television station, we believe we were acting in the public interest by shedding light on the thorny issue of banditry and how it is affecting millions of citizens of our country.

“The documentary traces the root of the communal tensions and systemic inadequacies which led to the armed conflict that is setting the stage for another grand humanitarian crisis in Nigeria. It presents insights into the intersection of injustice, ethnicity and bad governance as drivers of the conflict. It also aggregates voices of experts and key actors towards finding solutions, including those of the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, Senator Saidu Mohammed Dansadau, who hails from one the worst hit communities in Zamfara State”.