The National Broadcasting Commission’s recent decision to ban Nigerian rapper Eedris Abdulkareem’s new protest song, Tell Your Papa, has been condemned by human rights organisation Amnesty International, which calls the action a “clear violation” of the right to freedom of expression and access to information.
Amnesty International called the ban “unlawful, arbitrary, and deeply worrying” in a news release on Thursday, claiming that it was part of a dangerous trend of intolerance and censorship by the government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“The National Broadcasting Commission’s blatant ban of broadcasting Eedris Abdulkareem’s song Tell Your Papa is a clear violation of freedom of expression, which includes the right to obtain information,” the organisation said.
Citing clauses in the Nigerian Broadcasting Code, NBC has designated the politically charged song—which stresses social and economic distress and criticises the government—as “Not To Be Broadcast.”
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However, Amnesty International said the move lacked any legal or moral justification.
“Categorizing the song as ‘Not To Be Broadcast’ for solely being critical of the government and people in power is an abuse of power and is unacceptable,” Amnesty said, noting that the action was “entirely inconsistent and incompatible with the right to access information and media freedom in Nigeria.”
Additionally, the organisation demanded that President Tinubu “direct the NBC to immediately withdraw the bizarre ban which violates a range of human rights.”
Amnesty also cautioned that the crackdown may have a significant impact on Nigerian artists, media outlets, and free speech.
“The arbitrary and unlawful ban by the NBC would have a disproportionate and chilling effect on the work of radio and television stations in Nigeria.
“This clampdown on artistic freedom is an appalling reminder that artists are at the risk of being silenced. Nothing can justify suffocating creativity,” the statement read.
AI argued that the move by NBC also puts Nigeria in violation of its international and regional obligations, particularly under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights—both of which guarantee the right to free expression and artistic freedom.
“Citing the deeply flawed and problematic Nigerian Broadcasting Code to justify the ban shows a new level of intolerance of dissenting voices,” the group stated.
The organisation reiterated its call for urgent reforms to NBC’s regulatory framework, which it says has long been used to “curb dissent and muzzle the press.”
“The ban highlighted the need to urgently repeal heavy censorship regulations of NBC that have been used to curb freedom of expression in the country,” the group said.
Amnesty concluded by warning that if the ban is not reversed, it could set a dangerous precedent for broader government censorship.
“It is not too late for President Bola Tinubu’s government to withdraw the ban which will have the sad repercussion of promoting censorship and generating a new wave of fear of repression,” the statement concluded.
As of the time of filing this report, NBC has not responded to Amnesty International’s statement, and President Tinubu has yet to make any public comment on the matter.
