Raheem Akingbolu
As political parties, politicians and media owners gear up for the 2027 general election, the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), has issued a warning to them against the exposure of political advertisements without regulatory approval of the council.
In a public notice signed by its Director-General, Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo, ARCON expressed concern over the increasing deployment of unapproved political advertisements, some of which it said violate religious and ethnic guidelines contained in the Nigerian Code of Advertising.
According to the regulatory body, the commencement of political activities and voter education campaigns has led to a surge in advertising and marketing communication materials that have not received the mandatory approval of the Advertising Standards Panel (ASP).
ARCON reminded stakeholders that all political advertisements and campaign communication materials must comply with the provisions of the Nigerian Advertising Law and other applicable regulations.
“The attention of the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) has been drawn to the activities of some politicians, political parties and support groups that engage in the exposure of unapproved adverts, some of which have been found to violate religious and ethnic guidelines and are against the provision of the Nigerian Code of Advertising,” the council stated.
The regulator further noted that exposing advertisements on traditional or digital media platforms without prior approval from the Advertising Standards Panel constitutes an offence under Section 34(3) of the ARCON Act.
Consequently, political parties, elective office aspirants, campaign organisations, advertising agencies and media space owners have been directed to immediately desist from publishing, broadcasting or displaying political advertisements that have not received prior clearance from the Advertising Standards Panel.
ARCON also disclosed that it would collaborate with relevant law enforcement agencies to commence a nationwide enforcement exercise aimed at removing all political advertisements for which prior approval was not obtained before exposure.
The council warned that it would prosecute any individual or corporate entity found to have sponsored, approved, exposed, benefitted from or facilitated political advertising and marketing communications without the requisite approval.
The notice signals the regulator’s determination to tighten compliance within Nigeria’s political advertising ecosystem as political activities intensify ahead of the 2027 elections.
The implication of the directive for political parties and campaign managers is that campaign communication can no longer be treated as an unrestricted political activity.
Campaign managers, media consultants, public relations advisers, advertising agencies and digital strategists will now be expected to build compliance into campaign planning from the outset.
