The media, not the problem

Miffed by what it saw as the unhelpful focus of the media on the failings in the security space which it argued was not in the national interest, the Nigerian government recently caused its watchdog, the National Broadcasting Commission, NBC to slam punitive fines on several media organisations in the country.

According to Balarabe Shehu Ilelah, Director-General of the Commission, the media organisations were being sanctioned for flouting the Broadcasting Code.

Specifically, the Commission imposed a fine of N5 million on Trust Television Network (Trust TV) over its broadcast of a documentary, titled: ‘Nigeria’s Banditry: The Inside Story,’ on March 5, 2022.

As for NTA-StarTimes Limited, MultiChoice Nigeria Limited, owners of DStv and TelCom Satellite Limited (Tstv), they were fined N5million each for broadcasting a documentary by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Africa Eye, titled, ‘ The Bandit Warlords of Zamfara.’

Specifically, the Commission averred that the said broadcasts went against the stipulation that “No broadcast shall encourage or incite to crime, lead to public disorder or hate, be repugnant to public feelings or contain offensive reference to any person or organisation, alive or dead or generally be disrespectful to human dignity.”

In their defence, some of the media houses and the broader mass media community have protested the action of the government, affirming that it is grossly punitive and repressive. On its part, Media Trust Group, owners of Trust TV simply averred that they were wrongly punished.

“While we are currently studying the commission’s action and weighing our options, we wish to state unequivocally that as a television station, we believe we were acting in the public interest by shedding light on the thorny issue of banditry and how it is affecting millions of citizens of our country.

“The documentary traces the root of the communal tensions and systemic inadequacies, which led to the armed conflict that is setting the stage for another grand humanitarian crisis in Nigeria.

“It presents insights into the intersection of injustice, ethnicity and bad governance as drivers of the conflict. It also aggregates voices of experts and key actors towards finding solutions, including those of the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, Senator Saidu Mohammed Dansadau, who hails from one the worst hit communities in Zamfara State.’

Indeed, this newspaper is compelled to add its voice to calls for the Buhari administration to urgently walk back from what is being perceived as a negative and uncomplimentary path in its relations with the media.

Over time, there have been incidents that have raised the concern of many as to the administration’s commitment to respect the right of the media to have a level playing field with which to operate. This is more so as both the constitution of Nigeria and enlightened global best practices dictate that the media be permitted enough leeway to contribute to national development through tracking, investigating and dissecting issues of public concern.

It is in this light that we are bothered that the BBC documentary, The Bandit Warlord of Zamfara and indeed the other reports rather than been seen as basic investigative reports on the operations of warlords, bandits, terrorists and other non-state actors that continue to kidnap, maim and kill innocent Nigerians, are now been portrayed as the threat in itself!

Schools have been closed, people displaced, livelihoods disrupted, security personnel stretched and the general well being of many undermined and rather than address these, it is the media that merely calls attention to these travesties that is being vilified? It is grossly unconscionable!

Indeed, the crisis of insecurity in the land is most enervating. And it has spread out across almost every state in the country. Only in the outgoing week, the Lagos state government expanded its okada ban to now cover close to half of the state. The FG is also mulling a nationwide ban on the use of motorcycles for public transportation. These all underscore the severity of the crisis at hand. So why focus on the messenger, the reporter, the mirror? Is the government now permitting itself to be cast in the mould of a bully and is this reminiscent of the dictum that bullies tend to go for soft targets?

The media is not the problem and this must be shouted from the rooftops. If anything else, the media has arguably been too soft and given the benefit of doubt to successively poorly performing bands of leaders whose governance failings have brought the entire nation to this very sorry pass.

We call for an immediate rescinding of the fine order and for accompanying messages of reassurance to be loudly conveyed that this saga indeed was a mistake. To not do so would give further credence to suggestions being expressed that the administration may have presently resolved to stare down the media. And that indeed would be a grave error.