A civil society coalition, the One Voice, has urged the media to make more use of the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act to hold the government accountable.
Presenting a survey at a media forum in Lagos, the group said since the Act’s passage in 2011, there has been no report of any media organisation taking government to court over denial of access to information.
The forum had the theme: Media and Democratic Governance: The need for media pluralism.
One Voice comprises groups such as the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP); the Human Rights Law Service (HURILAWS); the Centre for Constitutional Governance (CCG); Access to Justice (A2J); The Network on Police Reform in
Nigeria (NOPRIN), among others.
All are supported by the United States National Endowment for Democracy.
Speakers included Executive Director, Media Rights Agenda, Edeatan Ojo; Dr Tayo Popoola of the University of Lagos, Deputy Law Editor, ThisDay Newspaper Mr Jude Igbanoi, and Chair, One Voice Media Committee, Pastor Deji Adeleye, who read the survey report.
The group sought more collaboration with the media, saying: “The Nigerian media needs the civil society organisations as non-state actors to advance the cause of democracy and good governance, just as the civil society groups cannot do it alone without the media.
“The media in a way have become one of the strongest linkage institutions – bridging, as it were, the gap between the state and the citizens.”
One Voice said the survey showed that the level of newspaper report on transparency, accountability and other good governance issues was seen by 65.63 per cent of respondents as low.
The report said most newspaper reports are mostly sensational and lack investigative depth; while others are too patronising of government, even to the point of self-censorship.
It attributed the decline in the quality of newspaper reports the “brown envelope” syndrome, ownership interests, unskilled reporters, poor and unpaid salaries and corruption.
One Voice said: “The media serves as an effective check on those in power. They serve as the eye, ear and voice of the larger society. Indeed, it upholds the right of the public to know.
“However, the ability and willingness of the media to carry out this function effectively depend largely on the form of the state in which the media operate and the character of the media itself.
“This is another way of saying that there is a correlation between the existence of a free media and democratic governance. As a matter of fact, one of the main distinguishing features of a democratic form of government is the existence of free and independent media.
Igbanoi said some of the limitations of media outfits include economic considerations.
“The truth of the matter is that civil society is very critical of the government and understandably so.
“But every media outfit wants to survive and must survive on patronage from the government at all levels, from ministries, government agencies and parastatals.
“Therefore, the economic logic is very simple, ‘publish and be damned!’ So, when a newspaper engages in overtly and openly criticising the government and its agencies, it is tantamount to economic suicide,” Igbanoi said.
He added that a balance must be struck between the media’s survival needs and effectively carrying out the watchdog role.