Nigeria had been ranked 115 of the 180 countries of the world that enjoyed press free. The country moved from 120 that it was ranked in 2019 to 115 in 2020.
According to the international non-profit organization, Reporters Without Borders, journalists in Nigeria operate under a “climate of permanent violence”.
It goes further to add that journalists in Nigeria “are often spied upon, attacked, arbitrarily arrested, or even killed.” The report reflected that a journalist had been killed in Nigeria in 2020.
The report had it that two journalists had been shot dead while covering the protests of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria. One was shot in July 2019 and the other was shot in January 2020. The killings of these journalists had not been properly investigated to identify those who were responsible for the killing.
It accused that the two major leading political parties’ officials in Nigerian, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressive Congress (APC) were the carrier of disinformation in the Nigerian 2019 General Elections, most especially on social media.
It added that the protection of Nigerian journalists and the promotion of quality journalism is not in the Nigerian government’s priorities.
It established that Nigeria had more than 100 independent newspapers but lamented that covering stories that involve politics, terrorism or financial embezzlement by the powerful is very problematic. Adding that this was often orchestrated by the denial of access to information.
Here is the release “Nigeria is now one of West Africa’s most dangerous and difficult countries for journalists, who are often spied on, attacked, arbitrarily arrested, or even killed.
“Two journalists have been shot dead while covering the Islamic Movement in Nigeria protests – one in July 2019 and the other in January 2020 – without any proper investigation to identify those responsibly.
“The campaign for the elections in which President Muhammadu Buhari obtained another term in February 2019 was marked by an unprecedented level of disinformation, especially on social media, much of it the work of officials within the two main parties.
“The defense of quality journalism and the protection of journalists are very far from being government priorities.
“With more than 100 independent newspapers, Africa’s most populous nation enjoys real media pluralism but covering stories involving politics, terrorism or financial embezzlement by the powerful is very problematic.
“Journalists are often denied access to information by government officials, police and sometimes the public itself. The all-powerful regional governors are often their most determined persecutors and act with complete impunity.
“In 2018, one governor had part of the premises of a radio station razed after a series of reports criticizing his handling of local affairs. The police also detained a journalist for several days in an attempt to identify his sources. Online freedom is restricted by a 2015 cyber-crime law that is widely used to arrest and prosecute journalists and bloggers in an arbitrary manner.”
