Osama bin Laden and the Electoral Violence in Northern Nigeria: A Muslim’s perspective

purported picture of Osama Bin Laden

By Yushau A. Shuaib

The past actions of Osama Bin Laden before his reported death have been wrongly associated to Muslims even when his country, Saudia Arabia and Islamic leaders have continued to disown his so-called Jihad. Due to the attacks by his group, Al-Qaida on institutions and individuals Arab and Islamic world have being incessantly criticised for the action of few fanatics when in facts some of his victims include Muslims and Arabs.

This stereotype is similar to situation in Nigeria after violent demonstrations in the Northern part of the country over a Presidential election of April 16, 2011. Most commentators tend to generalise and attribute the unfortunate mob actions as either Northern Agenda or religiously-inspired. The views are obviously amplified in some sections of the media who would rather refer to the outcome of the Nigeria’s Presidential election as ‘Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian from the South defeats Muhammad Buhari, a Muslim from the North.’ This typecast has generated bad bloods among friends, neighbours and colleagues from different faiths and backgrounds who now relate on perpetual mutual distrust.

I was recently alarmed, after the election, when a friend unconsciously though jokingly told me: “you are now defeated and no chance again for you.” I got the message. He knows I neither belong to any political party nor promote parochial agenda of any form. In a sense, he knows I am a Nigerian but at this time he rather mischievously grouped me as a loser because I am a Muslim by religious belief and a Northerner by place of birth in Nigeria.

I had course in the past through my writings to describe senseless attacks especially in the North as devilish antics of politicians, desperation of jobless youths and drug-induced actions of addicted miscreants. Apart from the unfortunate killings of innocent souls, the major victims of the recent attacks after the elections are northern elites including public officers, politicians, and traditional rulers.

I was an electoral monitor who personally witnessed the conduct of the last elections in the North, being a member of a Media and Information Committee on Emergency Management (MICEM), under the directives of Director General of National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Muhammad Sani-Sidi. When the crises broke out I was assigned to accompany emergency workers for on-the-spot assessment and for distributions of relief materials to displaced people in Kano, Kaduna and Bauchi. The task gave me the privilege of coming to term with the indescribable destructions.

We moved with security escorts from one town to the other and in different Internally Displaced People’s camps with truckloads of relief materials. There were gory tales and sites everywhere we visited. There are sad stories of members of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) killed during the demonstrations. There is this pathetic story of a Christian corper killed in a Police station and also nauseating picture of a Muslim corper burnt to ashes in a mosque. The maddening mobs in their fury did not spare mosques, churches, houses, markets and business premises from their annihilation. A whole settlement was completely razed. In the presence of emergency workers, pregnant women delivered babies in the camps. These are not exaggeration but tragic realities.

While crook politicians and undesirable elements could be behind the senseless carnage in the North, I must on behalf of other peace-loving Muslims correct the erroneous impression that it was inspired by religion. Nigeria though a secular state is a religious nation where majority of the citizens are either Muslims or Christians with theological differences in each faith. They nevertheless share belief in God Almighty; belief in the Holy Books and the Holy prophets; and they are aware of moral code of brotherhood and the faith in the life hereafter.

Since this writing is from a Muslim’s perspective, my Holy Book, the Quran invites Muslims and Christians to come to common terms that we worship none but God; that we associate no partners with Him in His powers and divine attributes… (Imran;3:64). Similarly even when we should dialogue on the basis of faith, the same Quran warns us against hostile disposition and abusive languages but advises that we should ‘Invite (all) to the way of Lord with wisdom and beautiful exhortation, and argue in ways that are best.’ (Nahl; 16,125).

The Holy Quran also emphatically encourages Muslims to be tolerant towards others, warning that we should not force or intimidate others to our faith when it states that ‘Let there be no compulsion in religion.” (Baqarah; 2:256).Even in the face of provocation and aggression, Muslims are enjoined for calmness but can only take self-defence when it suggests “Fight it, the cause of God those who fight you, but commit no aggression; for God loves not transgressors.” (Baqarah; 2:190). In another chapter in the Quran it reveals that ‘Allah forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for [your] Faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them: for Allah loves those who are just. (Mumtahinah; 60:8)

As a Muslim not only do I rely on the Quran, I also take the prophetic words and actions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him who in various Hadith had enjoined Muslims to accord respect to the people of the books, the Christians and even Jews. In a handwritten Charter of Privileges to the monk of St. Catherine Monastery in Mt. Sinai, one of the oldest monasteries still standing today, the Holy Prophet of Islam wrote thus:

“This is a message from Muhammad ibn Abdullah, as a covenant to those who adopt Christianity, near and far, we are with them. Verily I, the servants, the helpers, and my followers defend them, because Christians are my citizens; and by Allah! I hold out against anything that displeases them.
“No compulsion is to be on them. Neither are their judges to be removed from their jobs nor their monks from their monasteries. No one is to destroy a house of their religion, to damage it, or to carry anything from it to the Muslims’ houses. Should anyone take any of these, he would spoil God’s covenant and disobey His Prophet. Verily, they are my allies and have my secure charter against all that they hate.

“No one is to force them to travel or to oblige them to fight. The Muslims are to fight for them. If a female Christian is married to a Muslim, it is not to take place without her approval. She is not to be prevented from visiting her church to pray.

“Their churches are to be respected. They are neither to be prevented from repairing them nor the sacredness of their covenants. No one of the nation (Muslims) is to disobey the covenant till the Last Day (end of the world).”

This charter has been honoured by Muslims since then and as of today the same monastery is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the oldest working Christian monasteries in the world together with the Monastery of Saint Anthony situated across the Red Sea in the desert south of Cairo.

With the foregoing, those who allow themselves to be carried away by emotion with combatant outbursts should rethink as actions of misguided elements should not be attributed to Islam and other Muslims, whether by Osama bin Laden group or local thugs. We should understand and respect one another and avoid those tendencies that corrupt our characters and souls. As Nigerians we should be wary of politicians who could use any trick tribal, religious and sectional sentiments to instigate acrimony among us for their selfish interest. As much as we crave for good governance and the dividend of democracy, while Nigerian politicians have their way we should not lose our senses of good judgement.

Video of Election Rigger in Nigeria in Action

This is the mobile video recording of shameful massive rigging by a voter for a candidate in River State.
Similar videos are being churned out, though amateurish but say a lot about election rigging in Nigeria in the April 2011.

The questions that need answers are:
a. Who is the person?
b. Who is the candidate/politician being voted for?
c. Which area of Rivers State the incident took place?
d. Who give the suspect huge volume of ballot paper?
e. Where are the INEC officials and Security agencies?
f. Is the NYSC corps member an accomplice in the rigging?
g. What should be ther fate of that election?

Sarah Jibril: When Women Betray a Woman – YAShuaib

The most respected woman politician in Nigeria

Sarah Jibril: When Women Betray A WomanBy Yushau A. Shuaib
This article by Yushau A. Shuaib has been widely published by national press in Nigeria and some online journals in February 2011

“Because I am a woman, I must make unusual efforts to succeed.  If I fail, no one will say, ‘She doesn’t have what it takes.’  They will say, ‘Women don’t have what it takes.’”  - Clare Boothe Luce

The above quotation by Clare Boothe, a US Congresswoman aptly captured what happened at the last Presidential Primary of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Abuja. There were three presidential aspirants: President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and a respected Nigerian woman politician Mrs. Sarah Jibril.
Though there were allegations of manipulation of the electoral processes and the intimidation of some delegates to the convention, the insolent solitary (one) vote for Mrs. Jibril out about 4000 delegates comprising males and females, means that Sarah Jibril was the only person that voted for the womenfolk in Nigeria; invariably she was the only person that voted for herself.

The question that continues to disturb me and which will continue to haunt Nigerian women is; where are the women activists, the feminists and the women politicians who were lousily disturbing the airwave with their so-called women liberation when they could have influenced their husbands, fathers, brothers, man-friends and boyfriends to vote for the woman?

The Nigerian First Lady Dame Patience Goodluck Jonathan, the Minister of women Affairs, Josephine Anenih, were obviously visible, before the PDP’s primary, calling for women empowerment and the need to support women in the next elections. It could be recalled that while launching one of the state chapters of her Pet Project; Women For change Initiative (W4CI) in Yola, the First Lady challenged Nigerians to believe in the immense capacity and capability of the women folk in nation building in order to bring about the much needed positive change the country is yearning for. She said her initiative was created to bring about a change in the lives of women through giving women soft loans for small scale businesses, provide support for those seeking political offices and generally changing the lives of women for the better.

On her part, the Minister of women Affairs, Mrs. Josephine Anenih was reported to have endorsed two- time Presidential aspirant Mrs. Sarah Jibril for elections at a Ministerial Press Conference in Abuja. She said the endorsement was to achieve the 35 per cent affirmative action come 2011 general elections and beyond provided for in the national gender policy so as to increase the number of women in appointive and elective positions come 2011. She added that the political empowerment of women is one of the ministry’s highest priorities.

They made promises of providing logistics and material supports, but the awful outing of a woman aiming for the highest political level with one-single vote calls to question the sincerity and commitment of feminine campaigners for gender equality in the polity.

Could there be some conspiracy by women against women or did they just demonstrate sheer jealousy against a woman of courage and determination who has courage to have consistently come forward to prove that a woman has a right to aspire to any position of authority.

Sarah Jibril herself asked a rhetoric question she put forward to womenfolk when she said: “What offence have I committed against the women of Nigeria? They should tell me so that I will know? They should check my records right from when I was a commissioner right from when I was chairman governing council and all other positions I have held in the past.” She added that: “Nigerian women should tell me what I have done wrong and how I have misrepresented them that made them afraid to vote for me.”

While only the Nigerian women should respond to her emotional outburst, it is necessary to point out that it seems they are not ready for real socio-political challenges as exemplified by this singular act of selfishness and selfishness against their own.

Why should men for instance, who have noticed how women politicians betrayed a female aspirant at the last PDP primary, have trust in voting for female candidates in the next elections when womenfolk themselves are in conspiracy against themselves?

I wonder what could befall other women seeking top public offices like governors of states. I just imagine the miracle Senator Gbemisola Saraki, a gubernatorial aspirant under Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN) in Kwara State can deploy to defeat formidable male opponents like Barrister Muhammad Dele Belgore, a philanthropic lawyer dearly loved by the masses under Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and Alhaji Fatai Ahmed an unassuming former Commissioner of Finance who is supported by the governor of the state under People Democratic Party.

Going by this action against the only respected and recognisable woman politician of substance in the country, Nigerian men must have seen the writing on the wall and take appropriate actions accordingly by advising their wives, sisters, mothers and daughters to be wary of politics or they might embarrass the entire family through woeful defeats in elections.

By the way, has Sarah Jubril’s failure at the PDP Primary gone to further reiterate the old adage that a woman’s role ends in the kitchen and at home to take good care of the family while the men take charge of external forces? Where are all the money and other resources set aside to support women’s cause in politics go to? It is appropriate to constitute a panel, excluding women in membership, to prove how those resources voted to champion the cause of women were utilised or diverted for other purposes. Exclusion of women in the committee is to guard against their conspiratorial antics against themselves.
Yushau A. Shuaib
yashuaib@yashuaib.com

Media: Bomb Blast and Conflicting Figures in Nigeria – YAShuaib

NEMA Officials

Bomb Blasts and Conflicting Figures -By Yushau A. Shuaib
This article by Yushau A. Shuaib has been widely published by major newspapers in Nigeria and online media in January 2011.

The youthful looking Director General of National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mohammed Sani-Sidi is a risk-taker and crisis manager who sticks his neck to disaster spots. He relishes positive news and abhors negative information on his agency’s intervention during disasters and emergency situations in the country.
In his quest to ensure that only good news comes out from the agency, he personally visits disaster zones to see for himself the kind of assistance required of the victims and how responses from the agency and other stakeholders are reaching the distressed people.
Since death is bad news, NEMA is always cautious in releasing figures of deaths to the public even while the agency is always in the forefront in providing body-bags, ambulances and in the evacuation of dead bodies to mortuary. The excuse usually provided by NEMA for avoiding the release of figures on casualty is that its major mandate is to address the need of survivors rather than the dead.
The recent bomb blast on the eve of Xmas in Jos, Plateau State, is not only controversial on who were the actual masterminds of the incident, the conflicting figures on the casualties are also contentious. There were different official figures on the deaths. While one official figure quoted between 30-40, another quoted 80-100 deaths but the mass burial by Muslims and Christians, as indicated in the media is far above those figures.
When the New Year’ eve bomb blasts in Mogadishu Cantonment were detonated, the agency was the first responder to arrive at the scene mobilising other response agencies as well as condoning the place and evacuating the deaths and survivors to nearest heath facilities. The official figures released are far below what the media reported from alleged eye-witnesses.

There have always been conflicting figures on casualties during various disasters in Nigeria including those as results of flooding, thunderstorms, fire outbreaks, communal clashes, road accidents and activities of militants.

Since the National Emergency Management Agency, is neither a full-fledged security-outfit nor fashioned in the mode of the conservative civil or para-military service, the lack of a national contingency plan in the event of disaster put the agency in dilemma on whether it should be saddled with releases of figures on human casualties. A national contingency plan can provide a guide on specific roles of each response agency in the event of disaster and who should shoulder the responsibility of officially announcing the casualties.
Every figure released after any disaster whether from identified official channels or anonymous official sources are obviously based on one or combination of factors such as security implications, political consideration and factual reality.

In Nigeria, it is not strange for mischief makers to capitalise on figures of casualties to wreck further havoc on innocent people and their properties. We are living witnesses to how reprisal attacks were triggered by figures that are untimely released or gory pictures of death. The last year’s gruesome mass execution of Boko Haram followers and the unfortunate and deceptive extra judicial killing of former commissioner of Agriculture in the Borno State by security personnel which were videotaped and downloaded on the internet and mobile phones, are alleged to be fuelling the reprisal attacks that has continued ceaselessly.

The media too, would not see any good news from genuinely good stories of survivals and the relief materials being provided but could gladly give prominence to the death figures and mangled bodies of victims.

There seems to be stiff competitions among the foreign media and local press as well as among the national newspapers providing some partisan lines in their reportages. For instance a day after the reported over 80 deaths from the Jos Bomb blast, some national newspapers gave prominence to an alleged Islamic website claiming responsibility for the Jos incident, while in other press pictures of mass burial of Muslims by an Imam was flashed in front cover. Some media that realise the implication of such reports to the sensitivity of their readership balanced their reports from other perspectives.

Meanwhile considering the fact that Nigeria is in intense political dilemma as a built-up to 2011 elections, politicians are also culprits in overheating the system with provocative statements in blaming their opponents over every misdeed. In fact political campaigns are now focusing on actions and inactions of major players to the crises in the country.

While the release of casualties should be treated with caution and necessity, in this period of advanced technologies where ordinary citizens have mobile phones that could record video and photos of victims of disasters, it will be foolhardy to manipulate figures for any ulterior motive which could portray agencies as liars.

It is necessary that the government, apart from ensuring justice is done by prosecuting persecutors and perpetrators behind some of the unfortunate incidents including officials who failed in their responsibilities and leaders who instigate the crises, no figure either under-estimated or over exaggerated can prevent re-occurrence of disasters in the country.

The media have social responsibility to promote national agenda of unity, patriotism and being our brothers’ keepers. The competition is there, but could there be any sense of fulfillment in promoting editorial features and pictures that could aggravate the situation and give undesirable elements the excuses to strike?

The ordinary citizen needs to read between the lines and be conscious of happening around them to properly decipher the likely antics of masquerades behind some of those disasters when one juxtaposes the scenario to the forthcoming general election.

We should know that politicians have ways of sending positive and negative signals to their supporters as well as opponents in a season of do-or-die politics, we should therefore not play into their hands.
Yushau A. Shuaib

yashuaib@yashuaib.com

How Media and Political Elites Influence the Electorate In Britain and Nigeria

How Media and Political Elites Influence the electorate in Britain and Nigeria

By Yushau A. Shuaib

Introduction

Yushau A. Shuaib

This paper submitted to MA PR 2010 Class of the University of Westminster, London discusses the notion that Elites hold the power to influence public opinion, which leads to a limitation of democracy. It also provides perspectives for a better understanding on Democracy, Elites, Media interference with references to a European country, Britain and African nation Nigeria.

It is important to note that while Britain practices a representative democracy where citizens elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf, a developing nation like Nigeria which is most populous country in Africa practices the Presidential system fashioned after America’s constitution. In addition, democratic system in Britain is as old as modern civilisation; its ethos is just being observed in Nigeria after decades of military rules.

Understanding Democracy

In the modern world democracy is acknowledged as the best form of government where the ultimate power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodic free elections. Salim (2009) also shared this view by adding that every nation craves for the best form of democracy to empower the people socially, politically and economically[1].

As a political system, it allows citizens within the society the right to have equal shares of on how they are governed and in the political estimation. Through an electoral process democracy is devoid of authoritarian and dictatorial tendencies of other systems like monarchy, militacracy, and diarchy that are mostly practiced in the Arab world, Africa, and some Asian nations.

Democracy gives all people the right to participate in governance regardless of religious beliefs, gender, sexual orientation, physical well being and any other form of discrimination. After duration of mandatory tenures, elections are held to usher new governments. Whether in a Parliamentary or Presidential system, elected government are responsible to the electorate and are held accountable. The citizens exercise control and power to elect or remove a government during elections.

Democracy is not only enjoyed by the citizens but also received supports from people in various sectors of the economy. Miller and Dinan (2000) even point out that PR has traditionally helped financial capitalists and big-business interests maintain their dominant position in the political economy of liberal democracies.[2]

The Powerful Elites

Elites are powerful and influential groups of people within a larger society. In most cases they are in the minority in term of population, but their privileged instruments and positions make their status look larger than the society itself. With their privileged and intimidating personages, other members of the community see them with envy because of their superior intellectual, social, or economic status.”

The elites may not necessarily be in the government to influence decisions in government and private businesses. In some countries some elitist groups have impacted positive on the economic development of their communities but in other cases, they install people into government to win contracts and protect their businesses.

Moloney (2006) notes that Capitalists are an elite who control the accumulation and distribution of funds needed by business for profitable growth and that the control makes them as powerful as, if not powerful than, elected governments and certainly more powerful than other interests in liberal democracies. In operating their control, the capitalist elite have access to professionals such as investment managers, deal makers, accountant, lawyers, marketeers and public relations agencies.[3]

There are clear cases of elitist conspiracy against democratic processes not only in the developing nations where electoral processes are largely in their infancy but all in the developed economies that carry the flags of democratic evangelism.

The fraudulent elections engineered by politicians in Nigeria and excessive partisanship of media in political campaign in Britain expose on how elites hold the power to influence public opinions which leads to a limitation of democracy.

Political Elites Manipulate Elections in Nigeria

The Nigerian elites since the re-emergence of democracy in 1999 have continued to manipulate public opinion by sponsoring political campaigns for their preferred candidates who would protect their interest. It is unfortunate that those that have the credentials for top public positions must appear beggarly to the elites who determine their eligibility to win elections based on unwritten agreement to protect some parochial interest. Not even the educated citizens have the courage to make positive contributions, in discourse, to influence public opinion.

Writing in the Nigerian Village square, Oke Ndibe insists that Nigerian intellectuals, for the most part, have abdicated the historical duty of fashioning a discourse capable of clarifying the forces at play in the Nigerian polity as well as charting possibilities. According to him the failure of this class to find a language adequate to the task of articulating the nation’s predicament and prospects accounts for the confusion at the heart of the project called Nigeria. “Most of our intellectuals have grown lazy, both intellectually and morally. Their first dream is to be invited to serve in the corridors of power. In order to snag an invitation, they’re willing to go blind, to lull themselves to sleep. They are willing to broker all kinds of deals with the Devil. Anything for the opportunity to breathe the air polluted by those who wield power.”[4]

The elites are so selfish and so self-centred that all they need is to milk the country. The former Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nasir El-Rufai says: “We have a short-sighted political elite that has put their own need for power and accumulation of wealth above the interests of the country.”[5]

The brutal approach of the elites in Nigeria who also have controlled on some of the media is traced to their antecedents in dictatorial regimes. Most of them are retired military and paramilitary officers who have ruled the nation arbitrarily and would not like their past misdeeds to be exposed. A columnist Salisu Suleiman discloses that it is common for analysts of all sorts to blame the ills of Nigeria on the ‘ruling elite’ who are in the political class, top businessmen, traditional rulers and others in the higher echelons of society in this class. He insists that if one is looking for members of this class, the person should look towards the military.”[6]

He said the movers and shakers of Nigeria who set the agenda for manipulation of public opinion have military background. Top elected public figures are products are products of the military. Past civilian Presidents including civilians:  Shagari and Shonekan and Yar’Adua were all products of the military. The elites do not necessarily need to hold power political offices to influence and install elections of civilians to protect their interests. Thus they have remained firmly in control of policies and programmes of democratic government they installed through sponsored publicity and grandstanding.

With massive wealth elites control the media and entertainment industry to deny ordinary citizens the right to choose their leaders through free and fair elections.

Media Elites’ Lopsidedness in British Electioneering

During the campaign towards 2011 Elections in Britain, the hands of the major influencers become more glaring day by day. The media owners’ bias towards some of the candidates for the election directly manipulates public opinion and the chance of ordinary voters to make independent choices.

Democracy, Freedom of speech and freedom of thought are fine in theory but the reality on the ground do not always match the theory considering the influence of opinion moulders which is the press being controlled by their respective proprietors. With the public rarely having the time to read the hand-writings on the wall, the media elites manipulate the information flow and spoon-fed the electorates with ideas and ideals that promote other hidden agenda.

The influence of media in British politics is not new; they now collaborate with politicians in attempts to satisfy the appetite of the media barons. Neil Clark writes that “to get elected, and gain the support of big business and the powerful Murdoch media empire, (former Prime Minister) Blair embraced the economic tenets of Thatcherism – mixed in with a generous dose of social liberalism to give the solution a ‘progressive’ gloss. Such a combination of economic and social liberalism would not only gain the approval of the Sun, Times and News of the World, but the Guardian too. And in terms of winning elections in a country where big business and the City now called all the shots, it worked a treat. What all of this means is that: the vast majority of Britons who don’t sign up to the phoney Westminster elite consensus are effectively disenfranchised.[7]

Writing in the Guardian, David Yelland, a former editor of the Sun exposes the hypocrisy of media barons who claimed neutrality in press coverage of political programmes. He recalls his experience at the Sun when the paper deliberately ignored and refused to provide media coverage of other contenders to elections.

Making reference to campaigns towards the 2011 British election, Yelland points out that “if the Liberal Democrats actually won the election – or held the balance of power – it would be the first time in decades that Murdoch was locked out of British politics. In so many ways, a vote for the Lib Dems is a vote against Murdoch and the media elite.”[8]

The partisanship of the Sun and its publishers was exposed in past elections when Yelland recalls his first year in the paper when reporters were not sent to cover Liberal Democrat conference. According to him “We did not send a single reporter for fear of encouraging them… So while we sent a team of five, plus assorted senior staff, to both the Tory and Labour conferences, we sent nobody to the Lib Dems. And while successive News International chiefs have held parties at both those conferences, they have never to my knowledge even attended a Lib Dem conference.”[9]

He went on to paint a gloomy picture of the situation when very serious men and women stay out of politics because the national discourse is conducted by populists with no interest in politics whatsoever. Point out that what currently exists in the United Kingdom is a coming together of the political elite and the media in a way that makes people outside London or outside those elites feel disenfranchised and powerless.

Other lesser parties are completely and deliberately underreported except when there are excuses to highlight their bad images. They are the ‘invisible party, purposely edged off the paper’s pages and ignored.’

The broadcast media are fairer and objective in their reportage in electoral coverage than the print media. The owners and the editors of newspapers are culprits and guilty not only the Murdoch and his Sun. Writing in article, Yushau Shuaib believes the Independent seems to be the only newspaper in Britain that’s free from proprietorial influence and political allegiance. He observes that “the Labour Party and its leader, Gordon Brown receives editorial sympathy from the Mirror and the Guardian; the Conservative Party and its Leader, David Cameron receives supports of Daily Mail, the Telegraph, the Time and the Sun; while Nick Clegg of Liberal Democrat has no major newspaper’s official backing except public goodwill and sincerity of some reporters.”[10]

When Public Opinion is Questioned

Opinions of the public count in production of goods and services and formulation of programmes and policies. A Nigerian author, Osuji (1999) describes public opinion as an expression of a belief held in common by members, a group or public on a controversial issue of general importance.[11]

Such definitions have been expressed by scholars in mass communications and sociology like Key (1961) who defines public opinion as consisting of those opinions held by private which government finds prudent to heed. [12]

In most cases public opinion is viewed as the collective individual attitudes and beliefs on a given issue of importance. It is usually influenced by those in public relations and the media. Political leaders and their collaborative elites invest huge resources in their attempt to sway public opinion. The media, as a reliable tool plays a critical role in forming the opinion.

Kegley and Niltkopt (1991) agree with this definition when they said that public opinion is the sum of all private opinions of which government officials in some measure are aware and which they take into account in determining their official actions.[13]

When the media is very powerful and influential, the public opinion dances invariably to the editorial tune to favour the argument, even if it is one-sided exposition. The media influences public opinion in many ways including how they vote and rating of individuals and groups in the society. Media is everything to the people: what they see, hear, understand about everything that give them ideas on forming opinions.

One of the recent scandals on how media suppresses public opinion was highlighted by the Independent newspaper when it reports an allegation that the Sun failed to publish a credible and authoritative YouGov poll that ‘voters fear a Liberal Democrat government less than a Conservative or Labour.’ The Liberal Democrats and other electorates have accused the Rupert Murdoch, the owner of the Sun for suppressing the finding. [14]

In Nigeria, not only during the democratic era, the past military administrations in their desire to transform into elected leaders they attempted to manipulate public opinion to favour their candidacies. J.A. sambe Introduction to mass Communication Practice in Nigeria, spectrum books limited Ibadan 2008, discloses that a former Nigerian military president, general sani abacha saw public opinion as a vital government instrument. He used the media effectively to mould public opinion to his favour in his bid to succeed himself. The media accentuated his stage-managed and sponsored adoption by political, various groups and movements all over the country. The media, by stage-managing the public opinion, created false impression of overwhelming support of Nigerians for Abacha.[15]

Conclusion

From the foregoing, this essay observes that the relationships between the elite and political office holders have been too close like Siemens to the point that their separation is better imagine. The elites in media and business sectors decide ahead their preferences for leaders in democratic systems before elections are held. They invest heavily for victory of their choices in the most undemocratic fashion.

Many media programs have a political allegiance. Depending on what particular new medium the people are exposed to, their reasoning and opinions are reflective of information they received from the press whose major patrons are either financial or political elites. Because the media is the major source of information to the public, it exerts enormous power and control over decisions in the society.

The citizens have the right to get essential information that is untainted to form their opinion in exercising their franchise to demonstrate that a democracy is a “government of the people by the people for the people.”

The political class and the media must ensure that they utilise the best approach to win the public supports without greenwashing and brainwashing in their attempts to sustain the relevant in democratic polity. How of such approach is the use of PR strategies through accurate and timely information. Michie (1998) writes that PR puts information into the public domain and is a precondition for informed choice in a democracy.[16]

Public Opinion must be objectively conducted gives a clear picture of event and perception on individuals, groups, products and service and their rating. Examples have shown that media utilizes a wide variety of advertising and propaganda to influence people’s choices.

Utilisation of techniques of Public relations practice can be better in persuading the public to form an opinion rather than dictatorial tendencies of elites. Molloney (2006) agrees that PR has a beneficial co-existence with democracy from the perspective of liberal equalitarism, which argues for a diminution of discrimination between individuals through redistribution of resources in the name of social justice.[17]

A democracy that is foisted on people through manipulation and underhand dealing can not be said to represent the people in a given system.

If the elites should hold the power to influence public opinion, they must ensure that the citizens have the rights to use the platform to express their views because public opinion itself is the view expressed by a significant number of persons on an issue of general importance. The elite could control the information platforms like the media but for the survival and growth of society, the editors should provide objective editorial and fair coverage through news items, features and commentaries for maximum contribution to national discourse.

---

[1] Salim M. (2009) “Democratic Practice in Nigeria and Beyond, Abuja: Yassim Press

[2] Miller, D. and Dinan, W. (2000)  ‘The Rise of the PR industry in Britain, 1979-98”, European Journal of Communication 15(1), March.

[3] Moloney, K. (2006) Rethinking Public Relations, London: Routledge

[4] Ndibe O, January 3, 2007, The Folly of Nigerian Elite. (Online) Available from: http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/okey-ndibe/the-folly-of-the-nigerian-elite.html

[Accessed April 29, 2010]

[5] Financial Times, (April 30, 2010) “’reformer’ plans challenge to elite” (Online)

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e755f686-5460-11df-b75d-00144feab49a.html [Accessed May 2, 2010]

[6] Suleiman S. (October 9, 2009) “Unmasking Nigeria’s elite” Lagos: Next Newspaper (Online) Available from:

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5468364-146/FORENSIC_FORCE:_Unmasking_Nigeria’s_elite.csp [Accessed April 25, 2010]

[7] The First Post (April 7, 2010), “Why the General Election Result on May 6 Wont Matter a Jot” (Online) Available from: http://www.thefirstpost.co.uk/61816,news-comment,news-politics,why-the-general-election-result-on-may-6-wont-matter-a-jot [Accessed April 17, 2010]

[8] Yelland D. April 18, 2010 “Nick Clegg’s rise could lock Murdoch and the media elite out of UK politics”

The Guardian (Online) Available from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/apr/18/clegg-media-elite-murdoch-lib-dem [Accessed April 18, 2010]

[9] Ibid

[10] Yushau A. Shuaib (April 24, 2010), Partisanship of British media in Electoral Campaign (Online) http://yashuaib.wordpress.com/2010/04/24/partisanship-of-british-media-in-electoral-campaigns/ [Accessed May 3, 2010]

[11] (Osuji C. 1999 Dynamic of Public Relations. Owerri Opinion Research Communication Inc.

[12] -Key, V. O (1961) Public Opinion and American Democracy. New York Alfred A. Knopt

[13] Kengley, C. and Nilkopt E. (1991) “American Foreign Policy, New York: St. Martins Press

[14] The Independent newspaper (April 23, 2010), “’Sun’ censored poll that showed support for Lib Dems,” (Online) http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/sun-censored-poll-that-showed-support-for-lib-dems-1951940.html [Accessed April 23, 2010]

[15] Sambe J. A. (2008) Introduction to mass Communication Practice in Nigeria, Ibadan: Spectrum Books limited

Michie, D. (1998) The Invisible Persuaders, London: Transworld Publishers

Moloney, K. (2006) Rethinking Public Relations, London: Routledge

The PR Crisis of NNPC indebtedness

The PR Crisis of NNPC indebtedness

By Yushau Shuaib

Nigerian Nationalm petroleum corporation

The best story tellers for news media could be found among public relations practitioners who are creative in generating newsworthiness from events and statements that could even be inconsequential or belated. Most cover stories and exclusive reports have the imprint of those hidden publicity persuaders whose identities are frequently shrouded in anonymity. They are the ‘impeccable insiders’ and ‘reliable sources’ without by-lines.

Not that the media could not have their ways in getting stories, they use the PR sources to authenticate and validate their reports. While some of those image makers have succeeded in enhancing the profiles of their bosses as well as their organisations, others, due to slight misgivings become sacrificial lambs that are crucified and banished from their beats.

There is currently an intense controversy over a seeming harmless piece of news that has some elements of PR on the insolvency of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) which put a top public officer and even the federal government in an embarrassing situation.

The man in the storm is Remi Babalola, the Finance Minister of State who is also Chairman of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). A young man in the cabinet, who has remained in that position serving under three full ministers in the Finance Ministry: Dr. Shamsudeen Usman, Dr. Mansur Mukhtar and now the current minister Dr. Olusegun Aganga. He only had a brief stint as Acting Minister of the Federal Capital Territory while late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was alive.

Babalola has vibrant and efficient PR teams who crafts and flashes his actions and utterances to make lead stories. The strategy of the team led by Oluyinka Akintunde, an award winning investigative reporter succeeded in ensuring that their principal is recognised as spokesperson of the administration on economic and financial matters. The team uses all new media techniques, not only via email and text messages,  to ensure press releases, features, pictures and exclusive backgrounders are picked by newshounds.

While other Ministers of State, play second fiddle, the publicity campaigns make Babalola to be outspoken, independent and visible in his portfolio. Not that his senior colleagues are not doing anything, they may be too busy working behind the scene to address policy issues. He seemed to be enjoying their full confidence until the recent PR statement that went awry.

His dilemma started at the FAAC meeting in July 2010, when he disclosed that President Goodluck Jonathan had

directed the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to henceforth generate monthly oil production statistics for reconciliation in the second month after the month of data gathering. The directive became necessary to address the problem of recoveries for overpayment and underpayment to State from the 13 per cent derivation computation.

He then went further in the statement to confirm that NNPC had written the Ministry of Finance to explain that it was experiencing financial difficulties as a result of the disequilibrium between costs and cash inflow streams. The NNPC, according to him also requested for a reimbursement of N1.156 trillion from Ministry of Finance in order to repay its debt of N450 billion to the Federation Account.

Immediately after the statement, which as customary was timely issued by the PR team, the first reaction strangely came from NNPC Spokesperson Dr. Levi Ajuonuma who is always cautious in issuing rejoinders chose his word appropriate declaring that the corporation could not be classified as insolvent when it had a healthy cash flow and could pay for its crude and product importation obligations. He further claimed that NNPC was being owed N1.156 trillion naira by the government as a result of petroleum subsidies which if reimbursed would enable the NNPC to offset the N450 billion naira debt being owed the FAAC.

After weekly Ministerial meeting, like a cowed bull, Remi was led and chastised before the media at a Press Conference in the Presidential Villa, where Minister of Information, Professor Dora Akunyili lambasted his claim saying that it did not reflect the true position of the Corporation and that “NNPC is not insolvent. Given the nature of NNPC, there are regular transactions between the Government and NNPC and as a result there are always outstanding balances between them.”

The new Finance Minister, Dr. Aganga then joined in the rebuke by stating that “We have so many different transactions between the NNPC and the Federal Government, in some form of the balances it maybe a daily balance and in another it may be a trade balance. You need to make all of these things up, if you are worried about NNPC that is a different matter”.

In a twist with contradictory disclosure, few weeks after, an independent body, the Nigeria Extractive Industry Initiative (NEITI) reconfirmed that NNPC owes federation account N654 billion and threatened to sanction oil and gas companies that fail to remit oil revenue and taxes to the federation account as recommended by the 2005 industry audit. The Executive Secretary of agency Mallam Haruna Yunusa Sa’eed said the NNPC is yet to remit some of the money discovered in the 2005 audit and is among the top debtors of the federation account. Chairman of the NEITI, Professor Assisi Asobie re-echoed the same position, promising to lodge complaints to appropriate authorities on the oil companies that refuse to comply with NEITI’s Act for appropriate sanction.

Looking at the facts and dramas, one may wonder what actually put Remi Babalola, a former Executive Director in some of big banks into trouble? Is Remi Babalola growing wings and undermining his superiors in government? Is he an overzealous publicity freak who would rather seek media limelight than engage in government business without attracting attention? Or could he be playing to the gallery with hidden agenda, typical of politicians, for immediate or future ambitions?

The fact is that the position of minister of state is not recognised in the Constitution. In most cases they take orders from full minister who earns high salaries. They are more like directors in Ministries. Special Advisers with designated portfolios are often more powerful and influential than Ministers of State.

The unnecessary imbroglio, a national shame and PR crisis could have been averted through consultations in the spirit of team work. Some may argue that the young minister was taught the hard lesson to check his outspokenness and visibility from taking shine off his senior colleagues.

The PR team should now realise that they need to thread softly especially on a position whose tenure is not constitutionally guaranteed from arbitrary removal. Had it been that the office is typical of independent and autonomous bodies like RMAFC, CBN and INEC, one would have expected an exciting fire-for-fire that could be laced with propaganda. There is no crime in being very efficient in PR campaign, but definitely something could be wrong by overdoing it, especially in a system where there are other players seeking recognitions.

Yushau A. Shuaib

University of Westminster,

Harrow Campus, London

yashuaib@yashuaib.com

The PR Crisis of NNPC indebtedness By Yushau Shuaib
The best story tellers for news media could be found among public relations practitioners who are creative in generating newsworthiness from events and statements that could even be inconsequential or belated. Most cover stories and exclusive reports have the imprint of those hidden publicity persuaders whose identities are frequently shrouded in anonymity. They are the ‘impeccable insiders’ and ‘reliable sources’ without by-lines. Not that the media could not have their ways in getting stories, they use the PR sources to authenticate and validate their reports. While some of those image makers have succeeded in enhancing the profiles of their bosses as well as their organisations, others, due to slight misgivings become sacrificial lambs that are crucified and banished from their beats. There is currently an intense controversy over a seeming harmless piece of news that has some elements of PR on the insolvency of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) which put a top public officer and even the federal government in an embarrassing situation. The man in the storm is Remi Babalola, the Finance Minister of State who is also Chairman of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). A young man in the cabinet, who has remained in that position serving under three full ministers in the Finance Ministry: Dr. Shamsudeen Usman, Dr. Mansur Mukhtar and now the current minister Dr. Olusegun Aganga. He only had a brief stint as Acting Minister of the Federal Capital Territory while late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was alive. Babalola has vibrant and efficient PR teams who crafts and flashes his actions and utterances to make lead stories. The strategy of the team led by Oluyinka Akintunde, an award winning investigative reporter succeeded in ensuring that their principal is recognised as spokesperson of the administration on economic and financial matters. The team uses all new media techniques, not only via email and text messages,  to ensure press releases, features, pictures and exclusive backgrounders are picked by newshounds. While other Ministers of State, play second fiddle, the publicity campaigns make Babalola to be outspoken, independent and visible in his portfolio. Not that his senior colleagues are not doing anything, they may be too busy working behind the scene to address policy issues. He seemed to be enjoying their full confidence until the recent PR statement that went awry. His dilemma started at the FAAC meeting in July 2010, when he disclosed that President Goodluck Jonathan had directed the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to henceforth generate monthly oil production statistics for reconciliation in the second month after the month of data gathering. The directive became necessary to address the problem of recoveries for overpayment and underpayment to State from the 13 per cent derivation computation. He then went further in the statement to confirm that NNPC had written the Ministry of Finance to explain that it was experiencing financial difficulties as a result of the disequilibrium between costs and cash inflow streams. The NNPC, according to him also requested for a reimbursement of N1.156 trillion from Ministry of Finance in order to repay its debt of N450 billion to the Federation Account. Immediately after the statement, which as customary was timely issued by the PR team, the first reaction strangely came from NNPC Spokesperson Dr. Levi Ajuonuma who is always cautious in issuing rejoinders chose his word appropriate declaring that the corporation could not be classified as insolvent when it had a healthy cash flow and could pay for its crude and product importation obligations. He further claimed that NNPC was being owed N1.156 trillion naira by the government as a result of petroleum subsidies which if reimbursed would enable the NNPC to offset the N450 billion naira debt being owed the FAAC. After weekly Ministerial meeting, like a cowed bull, Remi was led and chastised before the media at a Press Conference in the Presidential Villa, where Minister of Information, Professor Dora Akunyili lambasted his claim saying that it did not reflect the true position of the Corporation and that “NNPC is not insolvent. Given the nature of NNPC, there are regular transactions between the Government and NNPC and as a result there are always outstanding balances between them.” The new Finance Minister, Dr. Aganga then joined in the rebuke by stating that “We have so many different transactions between the NNPC and the Federal Government, in some form of the balances it maybe a daily balance and in another it may be a trade balance. You need to make all of these things up, if you are worried about NNPC that is a different matter”. In a twist with contradictory disclosure, few weeks after, an independent body, the Nigeria Extractive Industry Initiative (NEITI) reconfirmed that NNPC owes federation account N654 billion and threatened to sanction oil and gas companies that fail to remit oil revenue and taxes to the federation account as recommended by the 2005 industry audit. The Executive Secretary of agency Mallam Haruna Yunusa Sa’eed said the NNPC is yet to remit some of the money discovered in the 2005 audit and is among the top debtors of the federation account. Chairman of the NEITI, Professor Assisi Asobie re-echoed the same position, promising to lodge complaints to appropriate authorities on the oil companies that refuse to comply with NEITI’s Act for appropriate sanction. Looking at the facts and dramas, one may wonder what actually put Remi Babalola, a former Executive Director in some of big banks into trouble? Is Remi Babalola growing wings and undermining his superiors in government? Is he an overzealous publicity freak who would rather seek media limelight than engage in government business without attracting attention? Or could he be playing to the gallery with hidden agenda, typical of politicians, for immediate or future ambitions? The fact is that the position of minister of state is not recognised in the Constitution. In most cases they take orders from full minister who earns high salaries. They are more like directors in Ministries. Special Advisers with designated portfolios are often more powerful and influential than Ministers of State. The unnecessary imbroglio, a national shame and PR crisis could have been averted through consultations in the spirit of team work. Some may argue that the young minister was taught the hard lesson to check his outspokenness and visibility from taking shine off his senior colleagues. The PR team should now realise that they need to thread softly especially on a position whose tenure is not constitutionally guaranteed from arbitrary removal. Had it been that the office is typical of independent and autonomous bodies like RMAFC, CBN and INEC, one would have expected an exciting fire-for-fire that could be laced with propaganda. There is no crime in being very efficient in PR campaign, but definitely something could be wrong by overdoing it, especially in a system where there are other players seeking recognitions. Yushau A. ShuaibUniversity of Westminster,Harrow Campus, Londonyashuaib@yashuaib.com

Partisanship of British Media in Electoral Campaigns

Partisanship of British Media in Electoral Campaigns
By Yushau A. Shuaib

Brown, Cameron, Clegg

It is not strange in some climes that politicians engage in electoral malpractices to win elections by hook-or-crooks, but it beats one’s imagination to suspect respected media outfits in the United Kingdom of being involved in manipulations of their readers and viewers through excessive partisanship.

Few days to British election, The Independent sends a daily free copy of its newspaper to householders in London. As a student I do not find the gesture as being generous because I read the online version apart from getting free copies of Metro and Evening Standard newspapers in the morning and afternoon respectively while on my way to- and-fro University of Westminster.

The freely distributed and low-priced newspapers like the Sun owned by the Australian media baron, Rupert Murdoch, have the large chunk of the British readership. This is evidence by commuters who take delight reading the papers in trains, buses and taxis.

It must be emphasised that The Independent always claims it is the only newspaper in Britain that’s free from proprietorial influence and political allegiance. That superior argument could not be claimed by other publishers and editorial teams of the major national newspapers. It is observed that the Labour Party and its leaders, Gordon Brown received editorial sympathy from The Mirror and the Guardian; the Conservative Party and its Leader, David Cameron received supports of Daily Mail, The Telegraph, The Time and the Sun, while Nick Clegg of Liberal Democrat has no major newspaper’s official backing except for public goodwill and sincerity of some reporters.

The unbiased Independent newspaper, in its story on Friday April 23, 2010, with a title: “‘Sun’ censored poll that showed support for Lib Dems,”  reports an allegation that the Sun failed to publish a credible and authoritative YouGov poll that “voters fear a Liberal Democrat government less than a Conservative or Labour.”

The Liberal Democrats and other electorates have accused the Rupert Murdoch, the owner of the Sun for suppressing the finding. The development further confirms how the Sun has nakedly and excessively exposes itself by campaigning for the Conservative Party against others in the past and for the forthcoming May elections.

Does media have the right to condemn countries like Nigeria where politicians are notorious in stage-managing electoral processes, when the British media deliberately manipulate consciousness of voters for certain political parties to satisfy the agenda of their respective proprietors?

The media may protect business and political interests of their patrons, as the Fourth Estate of the Realm, they should be cautious in their public endorsements of politicians for electoral offices since they are not newsletters of the political parties.

As a PR student in UK, I am baffled by the antic of British media towards the election and doubt if they are influenced by hidden persuaders, the Political Public Relations people.

Debating Lobbying for PR or Legal Practice

DEBATING LOBBYING FOR PR OR LEGAL PRACTITIONERS

For some years I have always get excited about Lobbying as a profession. Coming to the University of Westminster to study for a Masters programme in Public Relations was seen as an opportunity for me to further study interesting subject of Public Affairs/Lobbying which I learnt is as one of the modules that will be taught. Though we have a group on blog on Public Affairs/ Lobbying, I am just surprise that not many post-graduate students are interested in this dynamic and sensitive specialised communication. Instead of being lone ranger for a course which many are not keen to study in the next semester, I decide to study Political Communication… hoping it will cover element of Lobbying as one of the themes.

I have been compiling some reference materials with the hope of sharing it during the Lobbying Class and I am therefore compelled to share them with you in this forum. My interest on Lobbying started some years ago after reading about the influence of lobbyists in the socio-political and economic policies and programmes of advanced countries like UK, US and some European countries. Lobbyists are extremely powerful. They are behind some powerful decisions and policies of government as they promote different causes.

Sometimes in May 2005, as a member of the International Public Relations Association IPRA, I instigated a debate on position of lobbying as communication, asking members of the forum PR practitioners on the platform of its listserv: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ipra/ to help me with an answer to a question on lobbying.

My question with generate a lot of curiosity and intensive debate and discussion is very brief and it goes like this:

“It is said that lobbying is an aspect of Public Relations. In my country some lawyers say that it is part of their functions. Please may I ask: how does it operate in Public Relations or in your environment? – Yushau Shuaib”

Many comments and opinions came from members in Europe, America, Asia, Middle East and African continent. At the end the then IPRA Board Member, Richard Linning, after raising the debate about lobbying at the IPRA Board in Istanbul, had the Board and Council’s approval for the following:

Step one – create a searchable library of codes of practice – legislation and other appropriate documents – from around the world on the IPRA web site

Step two – examine these for points they have in common (who and how is yet to be determined but enlisting academic support would seem appropriate)

Step three – contribute to national and international debate about the issue – for example in the EU where there is new interest in a code of practice .. and

Step four – consider an IPRA Code of Lobbying Practice which reflects all of the above.

Such a Code – and the debate which lead to it – could be published as a Gold Paper.

It was pointed out that such a project will not be possible without the active participation of interested and involved IPRA members. Therefore further suggestions as to how that should be managed were sought.

YAShuaib

www.yashuaib.com