NBC AND ITS INCESSANT INEFFECTIVE YEARLY BANS......

By Olapoju Kolapo

For the past few years, it is worth mentioning that the 'Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), in all its shortsighted hypocrisy, has been consistent on one particular feat; the yearly ban of the most popular (supposedly the most obscene and offensive) songs of the year.

Artistes like P'square, Wizkid, Olamide, D'banj, Timaya, Davido have all at one time or the other felt the sting/hype of the supposed bans.

It goes without  saying these bans evidently have had  little or no effect whatsoever, as it doesn’t deter nor discourage the teeming fans to go online and download the songs and videos as desired.

The lingering but troubling question then is 'what's the point in placing a ban on these artistes' songs only to suspend it after the tracks have become huge hits and have found their way to the phones and laptops of their fans.

An action that does little to determine the fortune of a song,- especially at a time when the 'New media/internet is at its most vibrancy , and taking into cognizance that most homes have Cable Television which afford them (artistes) the opportunity of airing their songs for mass viewing ,- is indeed a total waste of time.

 It must be acknowledged that as credible as the NBC's motives might be, it carries a certain degree of double standard and sheer hypocrisy, considering the fact that several other songs with more offensive lyrics and visuals still fill the airways, and the fact, it eventually lifts the ban on the songs without any changes in the music.

And sometimes, the apex media body ends up shooting itself in the foot (like it recently did) by lifting the bans on most of the songs it had previously instructed TV/Radio not to play.

It is disheartening to know that the brains at NBC haven’t realized that by lifting the bans on these songs, it further defeats the purpose of placing the unnecessary bans in the first instance. A situation that only portrays them as a 'confused idle body badly seeking relevance'.

At some point in the not-too-distant future, the artistes are bound to start calling the bluff of the NBC, especially as they’ve started to realize that its 'bans' are of little consequence to the success or otherwise of their 'junk pop', a realization that can only hurt radios and Television, and further weaken the NBC, and belittle its attempt to settle the COSON/BON/IBAN controversy.