Dr. Lekan Fadolapo, DG, ARCON

The Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) has said  that the intent of its new law on digital advertising, which took effect from March 1, this year, is not to run anybody out of business or regulate the social media space, but to ensure that paid communications used on the digital  space, conform with the laws guiding advertising in Nigeria.

Speaking at  an interactive session with  representatives from the traditional and online media, advertising agencies and relevant stakeholders in the nation’s ad space, recently, in Lagos, the Director General of the Council, Dr. Lekan Fadolapo insisted that  online advertisements, targeting the nation’s vast market and her audience, would require a certificate of approval from the council before exposure.

He argued that unlike in the past, when such  ads were exposed indiscriminately, without the apex regulatory body’s approval, any material exposed without the approval of the Advertising Standards Panel (ASP) set up by ARCON  to vet such material, would now attract a minimum of N500,000 or a jail term.

Fadolapo stated that it had become imperative for the body to clean up the online space, so as to significantly reduce the number of unwholesome adverts being frequently exposed on the space.

According to him,   with the new ARCON Act of 2022, the regulatory body is now fully equipped to regulate advertising on the online space, while urging skit makers, content creators, comedians, and others, doing business online, to cooperate with the agency in its efforts at sanitizing paid communications in the space.

“Let me say at this juncture that those doing their businesses legally, online, have nothing to fear. Let me also add that the intention of the council, with this new online ad regulation is neither to regulate online media, nor stifle businesses.

 

“Rather our intention is to  let the bloggers, skit makers, comedians and others on the online space know that the advertising space is a regulated one. Anytime you move to that space, by placing a paid communication on the space, you’ve moved to a regulated space, and, as a result, you will be regulated, and such your  communication must comply with the law guiding ad exposure in the country,” he added.

Fadolapo also refuted claims in some quarters that the new development was done with the primary intention of shoring up the revenue base of the apex regulatory body in the advertising base.

 

According to him, it would be dangerous for the agency to fold its arms and watch the digital space riddled with unwholesome advertisements, full of unverified claims.

 

“Unfortunately, such ads had, in the past, robbed a lot of innocent Nigerians if their hard-earned money, while some have been sent to their early graves, because of all these unverifiable claims. No responsible government or agency will sit down and continue to watch this type of thing happen under his watch,” he added.