Off-Season Elections: INEC Tasks Journalists on Objective Reportzge, Seeks Collaboration to Combat Fake News

Ahead of the governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi States, scheduled to be held on Saturday, 11th November, 2023, The Independent National Electoral Commission has tasked Journalists to adhere to the ethical standards of the profession in their reportage of electoral activities.

The Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu made the call during A Two-Day Capacity-Building Workshop for members of the INEC Press Corps with the theme: “Ethical, Safety Practices and Critical Issues Relating to the Kogi, Imo, and Bayelsa Governorship Elections”, held in Akwanga, Nasarawa state on 16th- 17th October, 2023.

The workshop, was organized by INEC with the support of the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN II) Programme, through the Development Alternatives Incorporated (DAI) had in attendance 84 journalists selected from the print media, broadcast media, and online media.

The INEC Chairman was represented by the National Commissioner and Chair of the Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC), Mr Sam Olumekun mni, He opined that the purpose of the exercise was to deepen the participant’s knowledge of the Commission’s processes and procedures, which will go a long way in ensuring factual, balanced, and informed coverage of the Commission’s activities.

He called on the journalists to be unbiased in their reportage and present the citizens with factual information that would guide Nigerians to make informed choices to enhance free, fair, and credible elections. He was of the opinion that true democracy cannot exist without effective information flow’

He highlighted the major roles of the media in election coverage to include availing the stakeholders with timely and relevant information pertaining to the electoral process, carrying out voter education and public enlightenment; and mobilizing the electorate to participate in the electoral processes among others.

Prof. Yakubu said, “The Commission is conscious of the critical roles of the media in our political and electoral process and believes that democracy will only grow and flourish through a free and vibrant media.” He however pointed out that “a free and vibrant press is also obliged to adhere to professional and ethical standards. flow.’

Speaking further, the INEC Chairman said, “As first-hand witnesses to the Commission’s activities, the INEC Press Corps members also become the repository of electoral information in Nigeria. This places them in an advantageous position to play important roles in shaping the opinions and editorial policies of their media organizations on issues relating to the programs and policies of the Commission”.

“The implication is that Press Corps members must be familiar with the Constitutional mandate of the Commission and the roles and powers ascribed to it.

They must therefore strive to understand the intendment and nuances of the powers granted to the Commission by the Constitution and the Electoral Act that are expressed in subsidiary legislations including the Commission’s Regulations, Guidelines, and Manuals.”

In a special Remark, National Commissioner and Member, of the Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC) Prof. Kunle Ajayi, harped on the dangers of fake news and the potential threat it poses to the electoral process.

According to him, “The Commission’s distasteful experience with fake news in the 2023 General Elections has shown that, if not nipped in the bud, fake news can become the bane of election management in Nigeria”.

Prof. Ajayi added that “The alarming prevalence of misinformation, ‘fake news’, hate speech, and the weaponization of disinformation has become very worrisome to the Commission.

“Disinformation is used to provoke religious, political, and tribal sentiments in an already polarized society such as ours, especially, during election season, which is often the leading cause of electoral violence and uprisings, he added”.

He however suggested ways the Media can assist in mitigating fake news.
He said, “The Press must be committed to delivering thorough, verified, and unbiased information, pulled from credible sources to the public. At the same time, they must refrain from reporting information that encourages divisions or antagonistic discussions, which are likely to incite violence or endanger social life.”

Lending his voice on the dangers of Fake news, the Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, while sharing the Commission’s experience in a presentation on “Impact of Fake News, Misinformation and Disinformation on Electoral Information”, said the Commission was faced with constant incidences of fake news at every stage of the electoral process in the 2023 General Election.

These deliberate attempts to discredit the work of the Commission were not just from unknown or unverified sources but also from prominent Nigerians who had a lot of followership, the CPS Observed.

He maintained that a strong collaboration between INEC and the Media was critical to countering Fake news, disinformation and misinformation while assuring that the Commission will continue to provide the media with relevant information it requires.

In her remarks, the Administrative Secretary for Nasarawa State, Bar. Caroline Okpe, stressed the need for collaboration between INEC and the Media in ensuring free, fair, and credible elections in the forthcoming Kogi, Imo, and Bayelsa off-cycle Elections.

She averred that it will take objective, transparent, fair, honest Media coverage and balanced reporting to ensure safety, and success for all Stakeholders before, during, and after the conduct of the Elections.

In a goodwill message, the Team Leader of DAI, Rudolf Elbling, observed that Nigerian journalists are well-trained professionals, but it is always worthwhile to come back to certain principles which are crucial, to a credible and peaceful electoral process.

He identified: Editorial Independence; fact-checking; Impartiality; keeping a proper tone in reporting; and guarding against Hate Speech, as principles of a credible and peaceful election process.

Earlier, in a welcome address, the Chairman of the INEC Press Corps, Segun Ojumu stressed the importance of the 11th November, 2023, off-cycle elections to INEC, and maintained that it is essential that members of the INEC Press Corps are adequately equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to fulfill their roles effectively.

Mr. Ojumu said the workshop was a comprehensive and detailed training program designed to address the key issues faced by journalists covering elections and improve their skills in ethical reporting and enhancing their safety awareness, adding that the workshop will contribute to the overall integrity and fairness of the electoral process.

Also in attendance at the workshop were National Commissioners and members of the IVEC Committee, including; Mallam Mohammed Kudu Haruna, and Major Gen. Modibo Alkakli mni (Rtd), and Prof. Abdulahi Abdu Zuru.

UPLOAD OF POLLING UNIT RESULTS ON IReV NOT ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION OF RESULTS, INEC CLARIFIES

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has once again stated that the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) is not a system for collation or transmitting election results but an innovation intended to enhance transparency in an election.

The Director of ICT, Engr. Paul Omokore provided this clarification during his presentation titled: “The role of BVAS, IReV for Bayelsa, Kogi and Imo Governorship elections” at a two-day capacity workshop for journalists in Akwanga, Nasarawa State on Monday.

Engr. Omokore advised journalists and the public not to confuse the uploading of polling unit (PU) results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) with electronic transmission of results.
He explained that the INEC Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) is only used to upload pictures of the EC8A forms, which contain the Polling Unit results, to IReV. “This process does not involve electronic transmission of results, he said.

He continued “All it does is snap the EC8A Forms containing collated scores of each party duly signed and stamped, and then send this same picture to the IReV for public viewing. That is all. So, BVAS is not a collation system,” he said.

Engr. Omokore recalled that prior to the use of technology, election results in Nigeria were manually transmitted from the PUs to the collation centres.

He posited that technology deployment has been effective in achieving free, fair, and credible elections, despite the challenges involved, and explained that INEC continually makes extra efforts to mitigate these challenges.

According to him, “The role of BVAS is to ensure one-person-one-vote. The role of the IReV Portal is to improve the openness and credibility of our elections”