The Voice of Nigeria (VON), the official international broadcasting station of Nigeria, is decaying from within, SaharaReporters has learnt.
SaharaReporters gathered that its Lagos office, which was once the jewel of the organisation and winner of over 95 percent of its awards, now resembles a ghost station crippled by neglect, disrepair, and mismanagement under the leadership of Director-General Baba Jubril Ndace.
Rather than standing as a symbol of Nigeria’s pride abroad, the Lagos complex has deteriorated into a decaying relic.
Sources told SaharaReporters that staff endured months without electricity as the office generator sat idle due to a lack of diesel. When supplies eventually came in August 2025, following the intervention of the Lagos State union chairman, the generator had already broken down.
According to sources, this plunged the newsroom into darkness.
aharaReporters also learnt that out of several broadcast studios at the Lagos office, only one remains functional. The others have been abandoned, overtaken by dust, broken equipment, and neglect.
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“The building is ramshackle, the toilets are unusable, and electricity is never stable. Yet we are expected to compete with the BBC, VOA, and DW,” one frustrated staff member told SaharaReporters, describing the newsroom as “one of the harshest environments for any journalist in Nigeria.”
Beyond the physical decay, workers accuse DG Ndace of running VON like a military barracks, issuing unilateral directives, bypassing civil service procedures, and disregarding staff welfare.
“Despite the Lagos office’s track record, it is in a deplorable state. VON should be a symbol of excellence, but under the current DG, the agency has sunk into decline due to poor leadership, lack of accountability, and zero transparency,” a source said.
Staff pointed to a string of worsening conditions: months without diesel until union pressure forced action in August 2025; a collapsed generator that has left the newsroom powerless; and only one functional broadcast studio out of several.
According to them, the office complex itself is in ruins, with crumbling structures, unusable toilets, and erratic electricity.
Meanwhile, the DG of the agency is accused of running the agency with an autocratic, militaristic grip that sidelines due process.
In July 2025, several media outlets reported on the rot within VON. But despite the coverage, the matter appears to have been quietly swept aside by the authorities responsible for reform.
Some of the staff members expressed fear that without urgent intervention, VON may collapse completely.
