DEFINITION OF CONCEPTS:
When we talk of media coverage, we are simply talking about media exposure. The media covers individuals, events or phenomena: when their actions or occurrence is of interest to the public or when their actions affect or are likely to affect others. Coverage is done by sending reporters to the scene of the event or to interview persons. The reporter collects information which is published. In electronic media, there is additional back up by recording and or transmitting the scenes or interviews by audio-visual means.
Military, refers to the armed forces, required by law to bear arms for the purpose of defending a nation against external aggressors. The role of the military may also include aiding in the maintenance of peace and security within a nation especially during crisis or emergency. Section 217 of the 1999 constitution as amended makes provision for establishment of the armed forces and defines Its functions.
MILITARY AID TO CIVIL AUTHORITY
Section 218 of the Nigerian constitution gives the president as the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Federation the power to determine the operational use of the armed forces.
This means that the army may engage in services other than the ones specifically mentioned in the constitution by the directives of the president.
In such circumstances therefore, it will be regarded as military aid. This is because those roles such as the maintenance of public peace and security of lives and property are already the constitutional function of the police and other civil security agencies.
The military is seen, perceived and known for strength, precision and dexterity. This is why in many instances where the police and other civilian security agencies fail to achieve peace or maintain public order, the military is usually drafted to rescue the situation. There are several instances of this phenomenon across the nation.
Here in our own state, Cross River, the military have often and are still being co-opted to form the taskforce which deal with violent crimes such as armed robbery. A typical example is operation Messa which has been effective in curbing the incidence of armed robbery.
Nationwide, the military has been deployed to troubled areas in the country to safeguard lives and properties.
Typical examples are Odi in River State, Zaki Biam in Benue state, and recently Jos in Plateau state and Ayakoromo and Gbaramatu in Delta State.
Now these deployments have been absolutely necessary given the fact that the emergency situations could not be contained by civil security agencies. It should also be noted that by the fact of drafting the military to those areas there is a pre-supposition that the use of a very strong force is required to quell the breaches of peace. Yet this is where the conflict arises between the military and the mass media. For effect I am going to get excerpts of the coverage by some National Newspapers of these events.
The Zaki Biam operations for instance attracted the following media coverage.
- The Zaki Biam massacre matters arising by Orji Kalu in Kalu leadership series (1999-2004) Saturday February 16, 2008 as reflected in the Sun Newspaper.
- Quote: “It was in the build up to my incarceration that the condemnable and repulsive massacre in Zaki Biam occurred.”.
You can read the full text annexed. There are several other reports on that event.
There is another report on the Jos crisis entitled Women, soldiers clash in Plateau by Jude Owuamanam, posted on the Internet on Tuesday 25 January 2011. In quote.
Tension heightened again in Jos and its suburbs on Monday as more than 2,000 women in Vom Jos south Local Government Area protested the incessant attacks on people Of Plateau by uniformed assailants”. The report is attached.
There are many others you may read them at your own time. Suffice it to say that the army never had it easy in all its assignments. The media piled excoriating or painful attacks on the military.
Till date, there has been no truce between the two.
CHALLENGES AND CONSTRAINTS
Well, there will be no end to Military Aid to civil Authority. For a nation like Nigeria with centrifugal and centripetal forces which exacerbate tension manifesting in inter-religious conflict, communal skirmishes and militancy, there is always need to draft the military to quell cases of insurrection.
Of recent the Boko Haram have become more dare devil in their attacks, kidnappers are getting deadlier and spreading their tentacles, there is still the threat of militancy around us.
Will the nation desist from deploying the military to maintain law and order? No. Will the military fail to keep its side of the bargain of enforcing the law? Not on your life.
What then should happen between the military and the media. How can the military extend a hand of fellowship for the two institutions to forge an understanding?
On the other hand, can the press be convinced to leave military matters alone? Can the press hope to get more from the military than the aloofness it is getting at present? Not likely.
These constraints continue to pose severe challenges towards forging a relationship between the media and the military which is not beneficial to the two institutions but the contrary is what the two institutions owe as an obligation to the society in this democratic setting.
As it stands, the military will always remain the military with its hierarchical command structure. The military thrives in secrecy and does not feel obliged to anyone except its Commander-in-Chief.
The press on the other hand, is becoming bolder and bolder feeling that it has no restrictions. The recent revelations by Wikileaks have demonstrated that nothing is really too secret that cannot not be opened up to the public.
So, if the military must fit into the new world order: a world ruled by information, it must find a way of explaining itself to the society.
The media on the other hand can do better by putting into effect the time-tested values of investigation and balance in its reportage.
PROSPECTS OF MEDIA AND MILITARY RELATIONSHIP
As has been noted earlier, the friction between the media and the military is caused by a lack of a point or source for its reportage, but the absence of a reliable source does not stop the media from performing its function. So, the option open to the media is speculation.
This speculation is what has been decried by the military and drawing from it, bitterness and hostility towards the media.
The solution will therefore be the establishment of and strengthening of military Public Relations Corps.
Agim 2004 puts it this way “One of the ways the military can reduce hostile reporting is to introduce open door policy where certain information can flow unhindered to the press. There is no way the press will not speculate if the military continue to keep tight lips on burning issues of national interest”
Agim who is a senior Army Officer goes on to explain that “when there is a media policy, the (respective) public relations officer would monthly or quarterly brief the press without waiting until there is a major issue”.
Agim who at the time of publication of the book was a major (I don’t know what rank he holds now) said that public relations officers in the military are treated as
outsiders not knowing what information they can divulge and not provoke the displeasure of the authorities.
Public relations indeed is a management function therefore public relations officers in the military should form part of the decision making cadre.
2. Avoidance of stereotyping
The bitterness engendered by the two institutions over mutual suspicion has led to stereotyping. The military see the media as liars and people who misrepresent facts and misquote people. Many senior military officers never accept talking to the media.
The media on its part paints the picture of illiterate army officers who are not civilized. Stereotypes generate defensive behaviour which negates mutual interaction.
3. There is need to understand the role played by every institution. If the press does not understand the role of the military it is bound to misinform people. Similarly, the military must appreciate the function of the press.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, the military and the press must view themselves as partners in progress (Agim 2004). The idea is for easy information flow which should be bi-directional. A well-informed press is an asset to national security and an open military is responsive to democracy.
I will conclude this paper by quoting from one of your very own, a Senior Army Officer Major-General Emeka Onwamaegbu:
In quote, there is a manifest lack of knowledge and understanding of the workings of the media and the military by the operators of both bodies. The military needs the media not only for the success of its operations during conflicts but also because it is a democratic obligation for the two to relate as well as it being a command function of the military (The Nation of 13th January, 2011).
Thanks for your kind attention.
Photo by Emediong Umoh on Unsplash
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