The role of media intellectuals

The governor of the state of Ekiti

Main conference presented at the public presentation of the Testimony of Courage: Trials in the honor of Dapo Olorunyomi. Monday, May 27, 2019, Shehu Yar'Adua Center, Abuja.

protocols:

It is an honor for me to be here today to celebrate one of the contemporary incarnations of the best journalism traditions in Nigeria's history, Dapo Olorunyomi.

I was asked to talk about the role of the media in elections and democracy. I have the intention to do so by putting in context the sacrifices and the vision of journalists and intellectuals of radical and progressive media such as the popularly called Dapsy man. It is important that we reflect on the role of the media in contemporary elections and under democratic rule in Nigeria. However, one should not forget on such occasions to look back and celebrate the contributions of those who have worked in and through the media to ensure that we have the autonomy and democratic power in Nigeria. Whatever the imperfections of our current democratic system and the elections that have become, for the last two decades, the only legitimate means of designating our leaders, we can only celebrate the fact that our national destiny is no longer decided by a click into military barracks – or, as under colonial rule, among some foreigners who have imposed themselves on us.

The subject of the book presented today, Dapo Olorunyomi, is not just an exemplary example in public affairs or, more specifically, guerrilla journalism and investigative journalism, with a a fierce commitment to the search for truth in the service of the creation or maintenance of the human person. freedom, justice and equity, he is also an accomplished promoter or generator of civil strife and public quarrels aimed at the regeneration of society. Yet, all this is only one aspect of its public commitments and interventions. Another less known aspect of the public or less recognized, Olorunyomi is also an underground engineer of combine harvesters or social and political conciliators for the simultaneous stabilization and correction of public institutions. At one level he is a destroyer of hegemonic structures and tyrannical regimes; on the other level, he is a builder of manageable institutions for the generation and feeding of shareable public goods. A non-doctrinal ideologist, without compromise or commitment in building and maintaining a good society, Olorunyomi is nonetheless able to build underground political alliances and information exchange networks and even more. political intelligence among the elements even the most irreconcilable forces towards achieving otherwise impossible social goals. Although many of you know his work in one of the aspects of his life that I described earlier, in order to protect my sources – a practice that is not unknown to the investigative journalist himself. even -, I will not divulge confidential examples of the second aspect, especially in the post – military era. Some books, and some of the contributors to the book presented today, Testimony on courage: tests in the honor of Dapo Olorunyomi, have already hinted at some of the covert operations in which Olorunyomi was involved in solving Nigeria's persistent problems.

As a traveling companion in exile during the darkest days of the military regime, I can testify to Olorunyomi's strategic spirit, sacrifice, risk-taking ability, and intense commitment. in favor of a democratic regime and the greatest glory of Nigeria. Whether it is the Kudirat radio or the opposition radio at the end of the military era, or the dissemination of rival underground or aerial motives during the struggle for democracy, Olorunyomi has always been present alongside the forces of democratic change. national renewal. I tell some aspects of this story in my book, Exit from the shadows: exile and the struggle for freedom and democracy in Nigeria. [1] When we were transferring to Nigeria the equipment for Radio Freedom Frequency – which was later renamed Radio Kudirat – we had to go through the Republic of Benin. I flew to Cotonou where I met General Alani Akinrinade and others. I'm reading from page 165 of Go out of the shadow, After U.S

"Tested the equipment successfully … our contacts took care of transporting the material [to Nigeria]. At home, Beko [Ransome-Kuti] Mr. Amos Akingba, General Akinrinade's manager, took delivery, then the responsible team started planning for D-Day on June 12, 1995. The three key people who worked with Beko on this project were Gbolahan Olalemi, a versatile computer scientist and a broadcaster fully dedicated to the cause of democracy in Nigeria, who was later to join us abroad as the engineer responsible for Radio Kudirat. The other was a veteran journalist, Dapo Olorunyomi, one of the founders of the New magazine and Wale Oshun who discreetly watched the reception of Radio Freedom Frequency around Lagos while Lemi and Dapo devoted themselves to the installation of transmitters. "

In case anyone would have forgotten the situation in Nigeria in 1995 or for young people here too young to know what was happening 24 years ago, Dapsy and Lemi were installing the opposition radio transmitters under a tyrannical regime, but also murderous, regime. This is the kind of courage that Dapsy has shown in the quest for a democratic regime.

In another page of the book, I added that: "Given what was suspected of being their own leaning towards the democratic forces, the two main operators, Dapo Olorunyomi [were] declared wanted and [Olorunyomi’s] his wife, Ladi, was even arrested in his place when he was not found and "Lemi also found himself in the inter-center dungeon". [2] Olorunyomi was finally persuaded to exile.

Olorunyomi has risked not only his freedom, but also his life for Nigeria to become a democratic state in which every citizen will enjoy his natural and constitutional freedoms, including the fundamental freedom to choose his leaders. I must say that even though Dapsy was recognized as a leader in the clbad of journalists, his style of journalism and his public engagement led to their description. guerrilla journalistswhat remains to be said about Dapsy's natural propensity, intellectual construction, and political inclination is that if he were not a journalist, he would have guerrilla!

By working for a state and society in which freedom, justice and fairness are the norms, Olorunyomi's life and work are therefore useful angles for us to re-examine the role of the media in elections and democracy.

Media intellectuals and the struggle for self-determination

It has often been said that the history of media training, which was later identified as the Nigerian press, is older than that of the colonial then postcolonial entity called Nigeria. This fact, a media expert argued, badured and further badures that the Nigerian press was able and able to tap into the bonds, commitments and loyalties of the badociation in and through and through social, cultural and political divisions crucial for the empowerment and defense of non-state organizations. and also anti-state actions. [3] This is demonstrated by the pivotal role of the Nigerian press in the struggle against colonial rule and the struggle for political independence as well as in the struggle against the military regime, the mismanagement of civilians and the defense of democratic governance . Unfortunately, the role of division of the press in times of national crisis, as in the years leading up to the civil war, was also highlighted.

Other researchers have told us that the nature of the Nigerian press's history of the formation of the modern state in Nigeria has also helped the Nigerian press to develop and expand spaces for action. and autonomous maneuvers powerful forces and dominant interests in the state and society. [4] While these points are essential for understanding the public role of the Nigerian press, it is also important to underline the initial role of intellectuals, thinkers and social visionaries in shaping what was originally identified as the West African press and which eventually became the Nigerian press. press. The Founding Intellectual Traditions of the Nigerian Press of the Second Half of 19^th century that the likes of Olorunyomi have borne in the 21^st This century should be one of the essential pillars of the badysis of the current role of the media in elections and democracy in Nigeria.

As Fred Omu says in his highly regarded work, Press and politics in Nigeria: 1880-1937, [5] "What distinguishes West African newspapers from newspapers from the previous mission[dansle19[inthe19[dansle19[inthe19^th century]was their strong radical potentiality ….[T]The first print press was inevitably a political press. "

Omu intervenes in what might appear to be a comment on the media work in the Olorunyomis era: "As a result, the press badumed the role of the opposition and sought to compete with the government, encouraging the political awareness and involvement in providing a way. criticism from the authorities and the spread of discontent with official plans and policies ". [6]

Although the pioneers were not originally journalists but intellectuals with different professional backgrounds in law, medicine, engineering, architecture, and even the priesthood, as well as technicians and merchants, most from among them became media intellectuals because they recognized that the battle for the validation of humanity the black people of the West African coast and the enhancement of our cultural heritage as part of the project Enlightenment has been an important task in building a modern society based on the ideals of the Enlightenment, including human subjectivity, freedom, progress, reason, tolerance and fraternity. Among these pioneers was Robert Campbell, from Jamaica, born in Jamaica. Anglo-African Richard Beale Blaize newspaper of Lagos Times, Owen Emerick Maucaulay of the Eagle and the Lagos critic, John Payne Johnson and his son, Horatio Johnson, both of Weekly record of Lagos, George Alfred Williams of Lagos Standard, James Bright Davies of Nigerian Times, Kitoye Ajasa from Nigerian pioneer, Ernest Ikoli of African Messenger and Herbert Macaulay of Lagos Daily News. Although these pioneers had different professional skills before becoming public intellectuals, the Enlightenment touched and, later, anti-imperialist agitators, through their work in the press, they recognized that the important tasks of their Time could not be accomplished without using the press to raise awareness of its citizens and to build the public sphere necessary for the work of mental, social and political emancipation. The pioneers of the Nigerian press began to take an interest in the pressing issues of their time through careful and thoughtful badysis of the conditions of freedom and progress. Thus, they had an epistemological, philosophical and historical understanding of the project they were embarking on. They were prepared.

This was the tradition grasped and renewed by the generation best represented by Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe. When Dr. Azikiwe returned to Nigeria in the 1930s and began West African pilot, a new era of political journalism anchored in intellectual skills and focused on political emancipation was born in Nigeria. He mobilized the press not only as an instrument of the struggle for political freedom, but also as a central institution for the formulation of a vision of an open and good society. . It helped to recover the oldest traditions of the political press in Nigeria, that is, as the vanguard of the intellectual leadership of civil and political society. The Azikiwes project in the 1930s and 1940s focused on clarifying and articulating the conditions of democratic governance and autonomy. The unbroken links between the press and representative democracy are symbolized by the fact that the political party that first elected representatives to the colonial legislature, the Nigerian National Democratic Party, was founded by a journalist and newspaper publisher. Herbert Macaulay, who also worked with those who virtually reformed the Nigerian press in the first half of the 20th century.^th century, Nnamdi Azikiwe, to form another political party, the NCNC, in 1944. Later, on the party's platform, Azikiwe became Nigeria's first president.

However, for many years after independence, the tradition of intellectual leadership in public life by a media intellectual faded as ethno-regional politics, military rule and all sorts of bigotry extinguished the energy of the intellectual component of Nigerian journalism. However, this tradition was restored when the Second Republic collapsed. Two major media organizations represented the revival of this tradition in the 1980s. This included the founding of The Guardian newspaper in 1983 and the Newswatch magazine two years later. While the era of high-impact media intellectuals was resuscitated in the 1980s, Nigerian journalism has a new mandate to ensure intellectual clarification on the most pressing issues. of the state and society. It was a heavy burden under the military regime, as shown by the experiences of both organizations and their editors and journalists. Represented by Stanley Macebuh and Dele Giwa, The Guardian and Newswatch Leading intellectuals in the media, backed by an excellent team of journalists, have been cautious but have shown courage in reporting and commenting on public affairs. The opinion pages of The Guardian and The news were essential forums for the clarification of the most crucial public problems. They paraded some of the most eloquent badysts of the Nigerian situation. Even in the reality of the autocratic regime and the subversion of the principles of human freedom and the right to autonomy, these intellectuals and journalists working with them have ensured that the issues of national unity, democratic freedom, justice and equity are at the center of center of our national debate, despite the threats of badbadination and badbadinations, imprisonment and threats or the actual closures of the media.

When the likes of Dapo Olorunyomi inherited this tradition and joined the battle in the 1990s, something qualitatively different happened in the intellectual tradition I describe. I previously said that the Macebuh-Giwa era had been a parade of prominent intellectuals, backed by an excellent team of reporters, who were cautious but who showed courage in their reporting on public affairs. What has happened under the Olorunyomis era is that they have been cautious when they were showing more courage – some critics would even say they were reckless. And to that, we would say, "reckless for a reason"!

As insightful observers of the Nigerian situation and as students in the history of the death of nations, Olorunyomi and others recognized that the type of military adventurism to which Nigeria had faced from the late 1980s to the early 1990s could turn Nigeria into a banana. Republic. The end of Nigeria's history was imminent, unless something urgent and desperate was done. They recognized that we were heading for the endless dictatorship or imperial autocracy of Zaire's Mobutu, Eyadema's Togoland or Quadaffi's Libya. Thus, while the intellectual tools of the Era Johnsons, Azikiwes, Macebuh and Giwas were critical, the Olorunyomi generation realized that these tools needed to be supplemented by a certain intellectual audacity and ideological daring crucial to deal with the deadly regimes. . That is why radical and progressive media intellectuals of the 1990s recognized that in the absence of democratic rule, they were not just the surviving "People's Parliament" – SAY described themselves – they were also the most organized and vocal "voices of the people". African harmony Olorunyomi's anchored magazine, titled "Has Babangida Abandoned?", Radical Journalism in Nigeria has entered a new phase of direct confrontation with the military autocracy that could only have come to fruition. to the defeat of one side. Armed with pen – and I must add, helped by the restructuring of bonds, commitments and loyalties of badociation within and across social and cultural divisions, which included unions, local and international civil society and even subversive agents of the state – media intellectuals of the 1990s also became democratic activists using the press to end military rule in order to push Nigeria into a democratic regime. Those who thought that the popular maxim that "the pen is more powerful than the sword" was no longer a metaphor: the Abacha autocracy collapsed in 1998 and the military regime that followed quickly transferred power to a democratically elected government.

The radical press and its allied organizations did not directly end the mismanagement of General Sani Abacha or drive out the regime of General Abdusalami Abubakar. However, they provided the necessary conditions that culminated in the end of the autocracy and the return to democratic rule. When The news and SAY arrived on the scene to send the soldiers back to their barracks, they worked with many organizations and concerned people, at home and abroad – including some of us who had left the daily journalism for study and who were working abroad – to ensure that the military does not end in the history of Nigeria. The fact that we still have a country to call today is largely due to the efforts of the dedicated and dedicated men and women of the Nigerian press, represented by Dapsy.

I have provided this background to understand the role of media in elections and democracy in Nigeria, not only to highlight the role and sacrifices of Nigerian journalists, but also for a number of other reasons.

• One: I wanted to emphasize the fact that we can not account for the badets and liabilities of the Nigerian media regarding elections and democracy in the present day without explaining how the independent press has played a central role in ensuring democratic rule and democracy. competitive elections at first instance. In his badysis of the "social origins of dictatorship and democracy," US political sociologist Barrington Moore said, "No bourgeoisie, no democracy!" One can say in the Nigerian context: "No press, no democracy!" we hear this not only in the internationally recognized fact that there can be no genuine democracy without an independent press, but also in the specific reality of Nigeria: that without the important work and sacrifices of the pro-democracy press, Nigeria could not have had the democratic rule today.
• Two: I want to emphasize the fact that Iselection has been at the center of a certain tradition of the Nigerian press. This is also the reason why media intellectuals have said many useful things about the organization of the Nigerian state and society with the same level of insight and penetration, but certainly with as much zeal and commitment that Nigerian social scientists. That is why we can not talk about elections and democracy in Nigeria simply in connection with the role of the media, but also and above all, in the way the Nigerian press, in particular, has defined the dimensions of the regime in the country – and the concomitant need for periodic elections. At a time when various forms of military mismanagement sought to make the democratic regime unpopular and irrelevant to Nigeria's future, it was these media intellectuals who had helped to redefine the parameters of the debate and restore a democratic regime. as the only guarantee of Nigeria's survival.
• Thirdly, the third reason is to emphasize the dangers inherent in the noticeable decrease of the role I have described. If the Nigerian media fails to play the role they played in the past in pushing for the maintenance of a democratic regime, there is no doubt that it will atrophy and periodic elections will become a reality. hollow ritual. Also evident in the way the press has worked with other elements of the state, as well as the political and civil society, to truncate the plan of perpetuation that it had presented for the first time as the third candidacy of the Fourth Republic, we can not exaggerate the overbid. the crucial role of the press in maintaining the democratic regime and the guarantee of periodic elections, including the sanctity of the people's vote.

In most African countries, including Nigeria, most countries in the second half of the 20^th century, the absence of democratic rule and / or the infrequent nature of elections meant that the dominant trend was the struggle of the media and other social forces to Obligate the ruling elites to restore the electoral system and to ensure periodic elections. Since the 1990s, when many African countries have reestablished their democratic rule, the struggle is now centered on democratizing the conduct of elections and ensuring transparency and fairness. in electoral processes. It is therefore appropriate that we examine how the media behaved in this role.

Media, elections and democratic rule

The influence of the media in democracy and elections has become conventional wisdom. Media experts have claimed that the media "is the connective tissue of democracy. They are the main means by which citizens and their elected representatives communicate in their mutual efforts of information and influence. " [7] In democratic societies, it is badumed that through the information they transmit to a mbad audience, the media "are the essential guarantors of the responsibility of the elites and the popular control of the government." [8] In light of this, a democratic media system has two important characteristics. The first is that media enjoying constitutional guarantees guaranteeing citizens free access to all political information. This ensures that citizens can challenge their government and vote against the government if it does not serve the interests of the people. Secondly, the media are protected against arbitrary power and media pluralism is institutionalized. According to the experts, this ensures that "democracy is strengthened and its integrity ensured by the free flow of information and competition between the public and commercial media, articulating … a variety of political views to educate the public and enable him to make informed choices, including election time. " [9]

In any liberal democratic state, the media are supposed to badume certain functions within the political system. These included:

1. monitoring developments, positive or negative, that may affect the well-being of citizens;
2. setting the agenda – that is, identifying key issues in policies;
3. provide accessible platforms for clear and enlightening advocacy on the part of politicians and interest groups;
4. serve as a bridge for dialogue between power holders, political candidates and citizens in a wide range of opinions;
5. hold public officials responsible for their use or misuse of authority;
6. educate and motivate citizens about politics – including electoral politics – and civic participation;
7. maintain independence and integrity.[10]

It is now widely accepted that the best way for the political system to guarantee the greatest benefits to as many people as possible is to ensure that the people's representatives are chosen by the people. The most effective way to proceed is certainly to organize elections. Therefore, the purpose of the elections is not simply that the people choose its representatives, it is more crucial that the elections constitute a means of enable citizens to protect their interests. Therefore, it has been argued that elections "are one of the central instruments used by nation states to ensure that the democratic right of citizens and the will of the public are integrated into the political decision-making process". [11]

The media is crucial in this process. Indeed, the dissemination of information and commentary, the vigilance and the control of the electoral and democratic process ensured by the media are imperative for responsible and sustainable governance structures. [12] The media offer not only rival parties and political parties the opportunity to present their programs and projects to the electorate, but also to the electorate and the general public to badyze programs and programs. political parties as well as badessing the character and principles of those who want to represent the people in power. It is in the light of these findings that media experts have concluded that "a system of democratic governance that is not supported by a free, vibrant and healthy media system is a symbolic rather than a real system of democratic decision-making ". [13]

One of the most important media challenges in the context of democratic elections is the issue of autonomy. The Nigerian media may need to consider why they are still capable of making enormous sacrifices during crucial periods of history, such as the colonial and military era, to help end the conflict. colonial and military regime, but often fail to mobilize a comparable level of strategic vision. and sacrifice during the democratic era. Why are the Nigerian media able to demonstrate greater autonomy in the undemocratic periods of our national history than during the democratic period? When an election was canceled in the Third Republic, the critical part of the media immobilized the military government, but when the elections are stolen in the Fourth Republic, the media are often lukewarm in their responses. I recognize that the media can not use the same tools they use against a despotic government against a democratic government, otherwise they will bring about the overthrow of this government, like the first and second republics. However, a balance must be found that protects the sovereign right of the people to elect their leaders without encouraging anti-democratic elements to divert the frustrations of the people.

Modern mbad democracy is possible partly thanks to the media. Il a été noté que l'accès que les médias offrent aux citoyens ordinaires crée des conditions de dialogue entre les dirigeants et les gouvernés. Le rôle des médias entre et juste avant les élections est essentiel, car c’est un moment où l’impact citoyen du journalisme est tout à fait évident. Un rôle potentiel des médias dans ce contexte, en particulier avant les élections, consiste à jouer le rôle de "catalyseur civique". Pour agir en tant que catalyseur civique en matière électorale, les médias nigérians doivent faire la part des choses entre une couverture critique et une couverture cynique. des campagnes politiques. S'ils doivent être très critiques dans la couverture de leurs activités politiques et l'badyse des partis politiques et des candidats, ils doivent veiller à ne pas encourager le cynisme parmi les électeurs, de sorte que de nombreuses personnes décident de ne pas participer au processus souverain d'élection de leurs candidats. dirigeants. Etant donné que toute personne remportant une élection prend ses fonctions, même si ce sont les minorités électorales qui participent à cette élection, les médias doivent faire de leur mieux pour faire en sorte que de plus en plus de personnes continuent à faire confiance aux urnes. À l'élection présidentielle de 2015, le taux de participation n'était que de 44%. Le Nigéria se situait ainsi à la 41e position sur 44 pays africains – selon les estimations de l'Institut international pour la démocratie et l'badistance électorale. Si nous pensions que cela était en deçà des attentes, l'élection présidentielle de 2019 a même enregistré un pourcentage inférieur. En fait, il s'agit du taux de participation le plus faible de la quatrième république. Environ 35% seulement des personnes inscrites ont voté. Nous sommes donc en crise dans notre mode de représentation de mbade, d’autant plus que nous avons enregistré un taux de participation de 64,8% aux élections de 2003. Je ne dis pas que c'est exclusivement le problème des médias – les politiciens et les responsables politiques portent sans aucun doute une part substantielle de la responsabilité. Je déclare seulement que les médias ont un rôle civique pour convaincre les électeurs que la solution aux résultats décevants des élections ne consiste pas à refuser de voter.

De plus, les médias de la IVe République doivent s'engager de nouveau à «produire» des citoyens. J'entends par là, aider à produire des citoyens informés, actifs et éclairés. Il y a plusieurs façons de le faire. Il s’agit notamment de présenter des informations factuelles, précises et multidimensionnelles qui permettront aux citoyens d’avoir une compréhension approfondie et non superficielle des problèmes. La gouvernance est un processus complexe. Le réduire à un rapport superficiel va à l'encontre des objectifs de la démocratie, qui consiste à donner aux citoyens le pouvoir de choisir le meilleur leadership possible. Ce rôle de citoyens producteurs exige que les médias défient les candidats aux élections ainsi que les représentants élus du peuple. La qualité des interviews dans les médias nigérians, s’il faut dire la vérité, a malheureusement décliné. À quelques exceptions notables près, de nombreux entretiens avec des candidats politiques et des responsables ne semblent pas avoir pour but de recueillir le type d’informations et de renseignements indispensables à la recherche du bien public. Tout observateur critique des médias peut facilement trouver d’innombrables exemples dans lesquels un journaliste qui mène des entretiens montre qu’il n’a pas fait ses devoirs sur la personne interviewée ou sur des questions pertinentes. Certains journalistes commencent des interviews avec des personnalités publiques en déclarant «parlez-nous de vous-même» ou «puissions-nous vous rencontrer». Si vous ne rencontrez pas encore votre interlocuteur, pourquoi perdez-vous le temps de vos lecteurs ou spectateurs! Les bons intervieweurs sont censés perturber, contrarier et exiger la transparence des titulaires de charge ou de ceux qui exigent la confiance du public. Les questions critiques obligent les politiciens et les responsables politiques à se trahir et à laisser échapper le genre de frustrations pouvant aider les citoyens à prendre une décision quant à la qualité de l'esprit des dirigeants. C’est le genre de questions inconfortables qui ont amené le président Goodluck Jonathan à dire: «Je m'en fiche!» Il ne s’est jamais remis de cette expression de dédain pour le mécontentement du public, entre autres facteurs. L'électorat lui a montré en 2015 qu'ils s'en foutaient!

À l'ère des fausses informations, les médias jouent un rôle encore plus important dans la défense de la vérité, de l'ouverture et de la transparence. Comme en témoignent les dernières élections au Nigéria, ainsi que le montrent les élections de 2016 aux États-Unis et le référendum sur le Brexit au Royaume-Uni, la protection de l'intégrité des élections commence par la prévention d'une désinformation mbadive et de la désinformation à petite échelle. Technological revolutions have pluralised the means of getting information and news around the world. The social media are now the favourite information outlets for many young people. It is remarkable that the Nigerian media have done a lot to move online. Yet, the challenges that the social media pose to traditional media in terms of ensuring that the citizens have access to the truth and facts are enormous. Yet, how the media respond to this challenge now and in the near future will largely determine the fate of our democracy.

The media’s role in highlighting and pursuing gender equality in Nigeria democratic life is also critical. All the elections in the Fourth Republic have constituted a demonstration of patriarchal power in the country. Though an average of about 47 percent of registered voters are women, women have limited representation, as many observers have noted in their reports, and civic and scholarly badyses. We are yet to elect a female governor in Nigeria when three countries in Africa that do not have comparable human and material resources have elected female presidents (Liberia, Seychelles and Ethiopia). We need a dramatic increase in the number of women at every level and arm of government and in every stratum of political power and institution. A woman. Mrs Oyibo Odinamadu, was the Deputy National Chairman of the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) in the Second Republic. Today, most political parties have women leaders only in the party’s women’s wing. Yet, we cannot claim to be a truly representative democracy when a gender that represents more than half of our population is not well represented. This must be the case in the media houses as well. We need more female editors, directors, managing directors and chairpersons of media houses and corporations.

As a “platform for discussion, representation and debate,” the history of media’s role in Nigeria’s general elections is not by all means ennobling. Historically, periods of general elections are often periods when the country ran the risk of democratic collapse, violence and crisis. This was particularly the case in moments of possible transition from civilian to civilian government, given that this represents a major test of democratic consolidation. In the First and Second Republics, the media were used with reckless abandon along the lines of party-political affiliations as well as ethno-regional lines. However, one of the most significant outcomes of the Third Republic is that, because the two military-imposed parties were devoid of serious ideological contents, the most significant election of that Republic, the June 12, 1993 president elections was not so much a contest between the two political parties, that is the SDP and the NRC, but a contest between the electorate and the self-perpetuating military regime. Thus, though the annulment of that election created national tension and led to the collapse of the Republic and almost led to the collapse of the country, the experience taught the national elite a lesson that seemed to have been forgotten since the end of the Civil War. This lesson seems to have manifested in the Fourth Republic. The lesson is that no contest for power is worth the collapse of Nigeria. For political power to be in contention, the Nigerian state has to survive. This is what produced the unusual and unprecedented consensus that diffused tension in the country at the start of the Fourth Republic. I will like to argue that, among other factors, the June 12 experience also created an important background that ensured the peaceful transfer of power in 2015. It is easy to say that Nigerians do not learn from history. The defeat of a ruling party in federal elections in Nigeria, followed by a peaceful transition of power from one party (the PDP) to the other (the APC) in 2015, is an indication that Nigeria has fully embraced democratic transition as the only legitimate means of power transfer. It used to be that losing parties and disaffected sections of Nigeria looked to the military after two rounds of elections for a change of government. Now even the soldiers who are interested in power have found that it is far less dangerous and certainly far more legitimate to seek power through the ballot box – as many of the former soldiers have done. This is partly why for the first time in our history, we have not only had a peaceful civilian-to-civilian transfer of power and a transfer of power between candidates of different parties, but also experienced the longest run of democratic government in Nigeria’s history.

This has also had some positive effects on the role of the media in elections. The dominant section of the Nigeria media, with the exception of a few, is no longer organised along inter-party rivalries and enmity like in the First and Second Republic. Though sections of the media retain some elements of ethno-regional alliances, the complex of Nigeria’s developmental challenges and the important role of technology, including online media and the social media, has ensured that the two dominant political parties do not have exclusive ethno-regional character. On the basis of this, we can say with a measure of confidence that most sections of the media, again with the exclusion of a few, no longer give blanket support to a particular dominant party to the total exclusion of the other dominant party. Even where particular media houses are biased in favour of, or against, a particular party or candidate, to an appreciable extent they still give some space for the ventilation of the positions and grievances of the party or parties against which they are biased. This was hardly the case in the First and Second Republic, as the studies of newspapers like the Morning Post, Nigeria Tribune, Daily Sketch, New Nigerian, National Concord, among others, in the two Republics have shown. [14]

Again, while the space for plurality of parties was supported by the media even when two party system was decreed in the Third Republic, the experience in Nigeria has also led the dominant sections of the media to see the wisdom in a two-dominant party system, while allowing for the existence of other parties. This has meant that the possibility of single issue parties or parties along certain group of issues can blossom and win in certain areas or on certain issues in different parts of Nigeria. Also, while rotational presidency along bi-regional lines has failed to become law, in the Fourth Republic, it is increasing becoming the practice.

The scholar and civil society activist, Dr. Jubril Ibrahim, has stated that “successful elections in Nigeria can provide a more solid footing for building political harmony and stability.” After the first round of elections earlier this year, he added that “It is true that the elections have been very divisive due to the extremely negative campaigns that were conducted. Precisely for this reason, organising the final round in a manner that is clearly free, fair, credible and violence-free is the first step towards national reconciliation.” [15]

While we are still working out how to solve the long term structural problems of the Nigerian federation, wherever you stand in that debate, I don’t think anyone can disagree with Jibo Ibrahim’s conclusion that “successful elections in Nigeria can provide a more solid footing for building political harmony and stability.” This is why many of us, even when we lose elections in situations where elections are neither free nor fair, never fail in our duty to ensure a peaceful transfer of power. I am proud that Ekiti State is the first example of a state in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic, if not in Nigeria’s democratic history, where an incumbent governor recognised the declared victory of his opponent and invited him to a meeting the next day after the results were announced. This examples, I am happy to note, has since been followed by President Goodluck Jonathan and other governors in the country. I am also happy to note that the media strongly praised our efforts in Ekiti in ensuring a peaceful transition and encouraged others to follow the example. The fact that I was able to return to office four years after that fateful election, to say this least, is not only a pointer to the fact that there is life after any election, it is also a validation of the fact that the popular choice of the electorate, in the end, will be obvious.

For the Nigerian media to be even more relevant in facilitating free and fair elections and expanding the boundaries of democratic rule, they have to, in the words of J. Rosen [16] “rethink [their] relationship to all the institutions that nourish public life.” These will include both state and non-state institutions, such as the local government, legislative bodies, the administration of justice, the civil service, public corporations, the police, educational institutions, health and social service institutions, regulatory authorities, civic badociations, charities, social clubs and societies, professional badociations, etc., etc. These institutions, in different combinations, determine the quality of our collective public life. They also determine and are determined by the nature and quality of public governance. They help in defining the nature and orientation of the electorate. Ultimately, they determine the quality, effectiveness and efficiency of democratic rule.

To give two illustrations of the connectedness of these public institutions and how the nourishing of public life is determined by them, take the case of education and elections and education and civil service. Adult literacy rate in Nigeria is 68 percent. At least 30 percent of our population, that is about 60 million people cannot read and write. Imagine the challenges of explaining difficult issues to 60 million adults among the electorate who cannot read or write. By the way, Africa’s richest oil state and the most populous black country in the world is number 21 on the adult literary list in the continent. Even the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has been facing either full scale or low intensity war for most of its post-independent era has only one percent less adult literacy rate than NigeriaW This is a statement on the quality of our public life. As scholars have noted, “a broadly and equitably informed citizenry helps badure a democracy that is both responsive and responsible.” [17]

That the totality of the quality of the personnel in our civil service has deteriorated in the last three decades is not in question. There are many factors responsible for this that we cannot dwell upon here. However, one of the major reasons for the decline in the quality of our civil service is that, unlike in the 1960s and 1970s when the best and brightest were attracted to the civil service, very few people who do very well in school and have other options will seek to enter the civil service. One implication of this is that, even where you elect excellent people into office, the civil service that will deliver on their programmes and projects is in crisis, to say the least. Thus, the decline in the quality of our educational institution, public morality, reward system, etc. have a direct effect on the capacity of the civil service to nourish public life. Also, the decline in the capacity of the civil service to nourish public life has debilitating implications for the execution of the business of public governance.

These examples show that while it is important for the media to pay attention to the most important and most visible institutions of electoral democracy, there are several other institutions of public life that must also attract serious attention because when and if they don’t function well, electoral democracy cannot function well.

Doubtless, there are many factors which are responsible for the relative strength of any electoral democracy. My focus here has been on the role of the media. Even in that context, I have emphasised the role of media intellectuals – symbolised most ably by the subject of the book being presented today. Most people would agree that intellect is the greatest badet that the media intellectual brings to the fore in his or her intervention in public life. I agree too. However, I will add that as important as the intellect of the media intellectual is in the project of public life and the pursuit of public good, equally important is the civil courage of the media intellectual. Few media intellectuals in contemporary Nigeria can claim to rival Dapo Olorunyomi in intellect and civil courage. We thank him for deploying both in the service of our fatherland and humanity, in general.

I thank you for your attention.

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[1] Lagos: Centre for Democracy & Development, 2005, page 165.

[2] Page 166.

[3] Adigun Agbaje, ‘Beyond the State: Civil Society and the Nigerian Press Under Military Rule’, Media, Culture & Society 15(3), 1993, pp. 455–72.

[4] ‘The press and the politics of marginal voices: narratives of the experiences of the Ogoni of Nigeria,’ Media, Culture and Society, Flight. 26(6), 2004, pp. 763–783.

[5] New Jersey: Humanities Press, 1978, p. 11

[6] Ibid.

[7] Anthony Mughan and Richard Gunther, ‘The Media in Democratic and Non-Democratic Regimes: A Multilevel Perspective.’ Democracy and the Media: A Comparative Perspective. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000, page 1.

[8] Ibid, page 4.

[9] Ibid, pages 4-5.

[10] M. Gurevitch and J. G. Blumler, “Political Communication Systems and Democratic Values,” in J. Lichtenberg (ed.), Democracy and the Mbad Media. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990, pages 269–289.

[11] David Ward, ‘Introduction,’ in The Media and Elections: A Handbook and Comparative Study, edited by Bernd-Peter Lange, David Ward, p. x. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., Publishers, 2004.

[12] Ibid.

[13] P. x.

[14] Adigun Agbaje, The Nigerian Press, Hegemony, and the Social Construction of Legitimacy, 1960-1983, The Edwin Mellen Press, 1992.

[15] “Completing the 2019 Electoral Process,” Premium Times, March 8, 2019.

[16] ‘Newspapers’ Future depends on shaping trends in how people live,’ Bulletin of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, December 15-19, 1989, page 18.

[17] Michael X Delli Carpini and Scott Keeter, What Americans Know about Politics and Why It Matters. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1996, page 1.