Imperatives Of Responsible Security Reporting
By Kayode Adebiyi, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
Recently, a security intelligence and risk management company, Beacon Consulting, released a rejoinder disclaiming a newspaper report on the security situation in the country.
In the rejoinder, the organisation questioned the newspaper’s alleged increase in the activities of non-state actors and wondered why facts were twisted and to what end.
“In its report (the newspaper cited) … our August 2023 Nigeria Security Report and the authorship of our Managing Director, Dr Kabir Adamu to link the 252-fatality figure in Borno State to an alleged increase in the activities of non-state actors in Nigeria’s North East state of Borno, calling into question commendable security operations, both kinetic and non-kinetic, to combat terrorism in the state and region as a whole.”
While the organisation stood by its figures of 252 fatalities in Borno State in August 2023, it said at no point did it indicate that the figures represented an increase in non-state actors’ activities or that it was a result of the ineptness of government at federal and state levels and security forces operations to curtail insecurity.
“It is assessed that the intensity of the armed conflict has reduced significantly, indicating improved tactics, techniques, and procedures, particularly in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, as well as inter-service and inter-agency coordination, collaboration, and cooperation within the nation,” the initial report has stated.
Beacon Consulting’s frustration is understandable.
Typical of the nature of security reportage in Nigeria, many media organisations either sensationalise security reporting or select the most negative of angles.
Either for profit or to appear authoritative or both, media houses oftentimes misrepresent verifiable facts or twist them unprovoked.
The worst version of that brand of communication is when they neglect the fact altogether just because it doesn’t sound negatively explosive.
Apart from the improvement cited by Beacon in its report, since the present administration came in, there has been significant improvement in the security situation in the South East and Niger Delta regions, in addition to the improvement in the North East cited by Beacon.
For instance, the Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta, in its 2023 third-quarter Niger Delta Quarterly Conflict Tracker, reported an improvement in peace and security in the region.
“The Niger Delta conflict, peace and security landscape was comparatively stable in the second quarter of 2023.
“There were continuities in the nature and dynamics of peace and security with few changes in the trends of violence during the quarter.
“There was a decline in incidents of lethal violence and a rise in conflict fatalities during the period compared to the first quarter.
“Overall, there was an improvement in the peace and security situation in the region.
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“Peace actors implemented many successful interventions that helped to de-escalate political tensions and prevent communal violence in the aftermath of the February and March 2023 general elections in the region,” the report states.
In the South East, activities of separatist agitators and members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) have been significantly halted, thanks to the combined efforts of the security and intelligence agencies coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the cooperation of state governments as well as the support of the people.
Recall that the sit-at-home order enforced by IPOB has ended and citizens don’t have to go about their daily activities thinking about disruption and violence.
The order, which commenced in 2021, had impacted the economy in the region negatively and resulted in the loss of lives and properties of residents in the South-East.
In September, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, said about the situation in the region:
“We have equally heightened our efforts in containing criminalities perpetrated in the South East Region by the Indigenous People of Biafra and Eastern Security Network.
‘’Through Operation Udo Ka, our troops have, in collaboration with other relevant stakeholders, put an end to the infamous sit-at-home order that has almost crippled socio-economic activities in the region.”
In the Niger Delta region, even the uninitiated can feel the security improvement so much that, according to the June 2023 crude oil production report of the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Nigeria’s crude oil earnings rose to over N1.68trillion in June 2023 following an increase in the country’s output in May.
The report majorly attributed the increase to concerted efforts by security officials and oil operators, which means the fight against oil theft is gaining momentum.
Things have even improved since that report was published.
Admittedly, a lack of access to information is one of the major challenges faced in reporting issues around national security generally in Nigeria.
As the media has an agenda-setting role to play in an emerging democracy like Nigeria, it should not be denied access to information, because understanding the situation and reporting accurately is key to mitigating misinformation.
But more than anything else, media organisations should consider themselves as partners and co-collaborators on issues of national security.
Indeed, government communicators need to increase mutual trust and confidence by delivering a freer, more accurate, and more balanced flow of information.
As is common practice globally, state actors may decide to restrict certain information so that covert operational activities are not compromised.
However, the media should at all times resist the temptation of misrepresentation of facts and sensationalism just because it does not have access to certain information.
Yes, the activities of kidnappers appear to be on the rise and it should worry the security and intelligence community, but, no doubt, the most impartial and professional analysis of Nigeria’s security situation suggests that things have continued to improve.
This progress should be reflected in security reporting in the media. (NAN Features)
