The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) says it will establish an independent tribunal made up of retired judges and other impartial officials to hear cases involving alleged broadcast code violations.
NBC Director-General Charles Ebuebu disclosed the plan in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.
The move comes after Nigerian courts ruled that the commission cannot unilaterally impose financial penalties on broadcast stations without an independent adjudicatory process.
Ebuebu said the commission would also continue its appeal against the court rulings.
"The court didn't say NBC cannot sanction.
"It only said you cannot be a judge and jury in your own case," he said.
He argued that there is "a difference between a criminal fine and an administrative fine," adding, "That is why we have appealed the court's decisions."
According to Ebuebu, the proposed tribunal will operate independently of the NBC to ensure fairness and transparency.
He said retired judges and other neutral officials would hear cases before sanctions are imposed.
Comparing the plan to the Federal Road Safety Corps' mobile court system, he said, "If you're caught, you go before a tribunal or a mobile court.
"You don't really have to go before a fully-fledged magistrate court."
Ebuebu warned that removing the commission's power to impose sanctions could weaken broadcast regulation.
"We don't want to go from warning letters to withdrawing a licence.
"That's arbitrary.
"There must be a process, and we are going back to court to appeal that decision," he said.
The legal dispute began after a Federal High Court ruled in 2023 that the NBC lacked the power to impose financial penalties on broadcasters without judicial intervention.
In April 2026, the Court of Appeal upheld that judgment, affirming that monetary sanctions require an independent adjudicatory process.
The proposed tribunal is expected to address the court's concerns while allowing the commission to continue enforcing the broadcast code.
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