The Nigerian Senate has asked the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, and the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), to submit a comprehensive plan for the roll-out of digital switch over (DSO).
The Senate while making the demand also frowned at the inability of the ministry to successfully implement digital switch over. Its nothing that there was a need to investigate the factors affecting the project.
Senate Committee on Information gave the directive on Wednesday during an interactive meeting between the ministry and its agencies.
Chairman of the Committee, Senator Kenneth Eze, noted that the plan to be submitted by the ministry must clearly state the timeline for the implementation of the different activities.
He said, “tell us what you intend to do about digital switch over? Why is National Television Authority (NTA) still on analogue?” he asked.
Senator Sunday Marshall, a member of the committee who earlier raised the issue of DSO lamented the lack of political will to fully implement the project. He said the project now save as cash cow for authorities concern. Instead of switching over, he said the authorities concern are making monies from sells of bandwidths.
Responding, the minister of information, Alhaji Idris informed the committee that he is engagement with the DG of the NBC and soonest they will come up with a workable plan on DSO.
He expressed his readiness to confront issues impeding the implementation of DSO.
According to Mr. Idris, if Nigerians are to be aware of the benefits of DSO, they would not have given the ministry a break.
Expressing his commitment, Mr Idris said, “under my watch, DSO has to happen.”
Successive admissions have jettisoned the phased roll-out of DSO.
In the phased rollout, only about eight states have been covered, albeit partially. The states include Lagos, Abuja, Kano, Rivers, Kwara, Enugu, Osun and Plateau.
Some agencies of the ministry that were in attendance at the interactive meeting took turns to highlight some of their challenges.
While the Nigerian press council appealed to the committee to facilitate their restoration in the budget.
The Voice of Nigeria urged the committee to support their expansion drive by reviewing their enabling laws to allow them collect advertisements and benefit from their reach.
Chairman of the committee while responding to the appeals of the different agencies assured them of the committee’s determination to see to the review their their enabling laws to remove clauses impeding their effective operation.
He asked the NBC submit the list of its litigations and the progress report.
