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By Adewale Sanyaolu
As the global community celebrates World Press Freedom Day today with the theme “Shaping a Future of Rights: Freedom of Expression as a Driver for all other human rights”, the National Association of Seadogs, Pyrates Confraternity, Panama Deck, Ikeja Chapter, Lagos, Nigeria has frowned at the rising level of attacks on journalists carrying out their legitimate duties.
The group which quoted the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), disclosed that, at least, 42 journalists were attacked, harassed, beaten and denied access while covering the last general elections in Nigeria.
The Committee reported that no fewer than 14 journalists were attacked during the February 25, 2023, Presidential and National Assembly elections, while 28 were attacked during the March 18, 2023Governorship and State Assembly elections.
A statement by the Panama Deck of the association maintained that as the fourth estate of the realm, a free press represents a critical force in the democratic system of checks and balances in the relationship between the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary.
It added that the media is the conduit through which the people are free to receive and impart credible information, free of manipulation and not serving particular persons, entities or interests.
A free press, it said, therefore, bears the sacred duty of investigating people of power, asking the hard questions and uncovering the truth.
World Press Freedom Day, celebrated every May 3, was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993, following a recommendation adopted during UNESCO’s General Conference in 1991. This was a response to a call by African journalists who produced the landmark Windhoek Declaration in 1991, which aimed to promote an independent and pluralistic press as an essential component of democracy and development.
The Day presents a crucial opportunity to emphasise the importance of press freedom and to reflect on the challenges faced by journalists in different parts of the world. It is also a chance to recognise the vital role of journalists in promoting transparency, accountability, and democracy. Protecting the rights of journalists and ensuring that they can operate without fear of censorship, intimidation, or violence is essential for safeguarding the public’s right to information and for holding those in power accountable.
In Nigeria, although freedom of expression is protected by section 39 (1) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria constitution, the country has continued to rank abysmally low in global rankings.
According to the 2022 World Press Freedom Index map by Reporters without Borders (Reporter Sans Frontieres – RSF), Nigeria dropped to 129 from 120 in the latest ranking of press freedom across 180 countries.
‘‘As we join the rest of the world to celebrate this year’s World Press Freedom Day, themed “Shaping a Future of Rights: Freedom of Expression as a Driver for all other human rights”, the National Association of Seadogs, Pyrates Confraternity wishes to remind governments, at all levels, of the need to respect their commitment to press freedom.
Indeed, we expect that, as assured by the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, during the 2021 World Press Freedom Day, “The Ninth Senate and the National Assembly, in general, will never pass any law that inhibits the freedom of the press, but rather work with the media to further enhance the practice of the profession.”
We, therefore, urge the government to honour its assurance and give more bite to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which provides for a person, group, association or organisation the right to access information from Government Agencies, Parastatals, Federal Civil Service, Private and Public sector organisations providing public services and so on.
In this regard, the perceived weaponisation of the Cybercrime Act, which criminalises online communication that is deemed to be “false” or “annoying,” to target journalists and social media activists has to stop.
The government must also desist from the perceived unjustifiable gagging of the media through the Nigerian Press Council (NPC) and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), which have been accused of limiting freedom of expression and press freedom,’’.
The Pyrates Confraternity further lamented that the onslaught against press freedom took its roots with the enactment of the Newspaper Ordinance of 1903 and a follow-up with the Sedition Ordinance of 1909.
‘’While these laws were essentially meant to suppress the press from attacking the colonial administration, they have been amended by subsequent post-colonial governments, particularly the military administrations, towards achieving the same objective.
Going down memory lane, the group said In 1986, Mr Dele Giwa, the then Editor-in-Chief of Newswatch Magazine and critic of General Ibrahim Babangida’s military government, was assassinated through a parcel bomb at his home in Lagos.
Similarly, in 1995, Shehu Sanni, George Mbah, Kunle Ajibade, Chris Anyanwu and Ben Charles-Obi were convicted for reporting on an alleged coup plot.
We recall that in June 2021, the government clamped down on the social media app, Twitter, for removing a post from the President, which threatened to punish secessionists. It further banned the use of the app in Nigeria and threatened to prosecute users and companies who defied the ban.
The measure, which eventually lasted for seven months, was widely condemned by millions of users and rights groups as yet another affront to the fundamental human right of free expression and access to information, as a pillar of democracy in Nigeria.
Various studies have proven that there is a corresponding relationship between the level of press freedom in any society and its socioeconomic development. Hence, a free press is a catalyst towards achieving more prosperity, human development and a more equal and fair society. It is, therefore, a crucial factor for socio-economic development on the same pedestal as investment, infrastructure and education,’’
