Utilizing Media Reportage in South East to Check Security Problems
Chapter One
Research Objectives
The main objective of the study is to examine the role of media reportage in checking security problems in South East Nigeria, and the specific objectives are:
- To examine the extent to which media reportage can effectively identify and report security threats in South East Nigeria.
- To investigate the influence of media reportage on public perception and attitudes towards security issues in South East Nigeria.
- To assess the impact of media reportage on holding security agencies accountable and promoting transparency in the management of security challenges in South East Nigeria.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Conceptual Review
Concept of Insecurity
Insecurity is a multifaceted phenomenon that refers to the lack of safety or the feeling of vulnerability in an individual, community, or society due to various threats to personal or collective security (Mugumya & Batungi, 2018). Insecurity can manifest in various forms, including terrorism, communal violence, kidnapping, and armed robbery.
Insecurity is a global concern that affects both developed and developing countries. According to a report by the Global Peace Index (2021), there has been a steady increase in global insecurity over the last decade, with many countries experiencing high levels of violence, conflict, and instability. In Africa, for instance, insecurity is a major challenge that has hindered social and economic development (Adelekan, 2018). The continent has experienced various forms of insecurity, including terrorism, piracy, and armed conflicts.
Insecurity is often associated with poverty, unemployment, and social inequality. Mugumya and Batungi (2018) argue that poverty and inequality contribute to insecurity by creating a sense of hopelessness and frustration among the population, which can lead to criminal activities and social unrest. Similarly, unemployment can lead to poverty, which in turn can contribute to insecurity by making individuals vulnerable to criminal activities and exploitation.
Furthermore, insecurity can have far-reaching consequences that affect not only individuals but also the larger society. Insecurity can lead to social fragmentation, migration, and displacement, which can destabilize entire regions (Global Peace Index, 2021). In addition, insecurity can undermine social cohesion, erode trust in institutions, and limit economic growth and development (Adelekan, 2018).
Elaborating the Causes of Insecurity in Nigeria
Many scholars have identified several causes of insecurity in Nigeria. Scholars such as (Onyishi, 2011; Jega,2002; Lewis, 2002; Ali, 2013; Okorie, 2011; Salawu, 2010; Ezeoba, 2011) have identified several causes of insecurity in Nigeria. To them, the crises of insecurity in Nigeria could be traced back to the economic crisis in the early 1980s which was as a result of the falling oil prices in the international markets, OPEC price increases, privatization, economic liberalization, deregulation, currency devaluation, cold war era politics and Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP).
It was against this development that Emeka (2011) opined that it led to the emergence of ethnic and militia groups in Nigeria with most of them termed to be violent and terrorist groups. Among these groups he stated were; the Ogoni Youth, Niger Delta Volunteer Force, (NDVF), Odua People Congress (OPC), Arewa Youth Consultative forum, Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MASOP), Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), Egbesu Boys of Africa (EBA), Niger Delta Vigilante (NDV), Isoko National Youth Movement (INYM) etc. As a result of this, it set the stage for terrorist violence in Nigeria, more especially the militants in the Niger Delta, who adopted terrorist tactics to fight the government, who, they believe, are agents of foreign capital, domination and tools for exploitations.
Similarly, there was also the Tiv-Jukun crisis, Zangon-Kataf, Maitatsine religious crises in Kano in 1980,1983 in Maiduguri, Yola and Gombe. Today, we see the emergence of the Boko-Haram Movement which started in Borno and Yobe states. The group later, due to their criminality and terrorist activities termed as one of the deadly terrorist organization ever witnessed by the western world and was alleged to be off shot of Al-Qaeda. Gradually, Boko-Haram spread to cover all part of the northeastern states like Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states and they had part of their own fair share of the evil effects of terrorism attacks. This has in the last six years been characterized by insurgency and terrorist activities. Furthermore, Insecurity challenges can also be traced to the early years of military rule as put forward by Olabanji, (2014:, p. 40)that:
When large quantities of arms were imported into the country for the use of the military during and after the Nigerian civil war, some of which got into the hand of the civilians. Soon after the civil war these arms were used by civilians and ex-military men for mischievous purposes such as armed robbery.
He further observed that, during this time, there was also the army of unemployed youths, some of whom lost their jobs during the civil war. The level of insecurity assumed dangerous dimensions in the prolonged years of military rule as well as the return of Nigeria to democratic rule from 1999 to date. It was during this time that politicians procure arms and light weapons for personal defense and political thuggery. As a result, some of these arms and light weapons got into the hands of unemployed youths who used them for deviant purposes.
According to some scholars, Boko-Haram insurgency and terrorist activities were alleged to have been attributed to some factors. Among which are corruption, unemployment, poverty, poor government policies, weak judiciary system etc, as pointed out by Nweze (2004). He further identified some factors enhancing insecurity in Nigeria to include among others things: poor leadership, ethno-religious crises, socio-economic inequalities, small arms and ammunition trafficking, rural-urban migration and external influence among others.
Corruption
Corruption has remained one of the major causes of insecurity in the country due to diversion of public resources to private individuals. This called for the government, non-Governmental Organizations(NGOs) and all other related agencies to realistically and comprehensively study and address the causes of this problem with a view to planning an action to address these persistent problems today and in future.
Although some efforts were attempted to address these problems in the past; according to (Charas, Liberty, Wali 2014), for example, the previous governments, both Military and Democratic had tried to focus attention on good governance, prudence, transparency and accountability through number of ways, such as establishing Code of Conduct Bureau by the Murtala Mohammed administration in1975, Ethical Revolution by Shehu Aliyu Shagari’s civilian administration in 1979, War Against Indiscipline and Corruption by General Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in 1984, Mass Mobilization for Self-Reliance, Social Justice and Economic Recovery by General Ibrahim Babangida in 1985 , Failed Banks Tribunal by General Sani Abacha in 1994, Anti-Corruption Bill by Olusegun Obasanjo in 2000.Similarly, in 2007, the administration of Umaru Musa Yaradua has made it a cardinal policy to observe rule of law to enhance public accountability and stamp out corruption in the Nigerian society.
Yet, corruption in Nigeria has become institutionalized thereby translating into wider economic, political and social inequality. Inequality means a concentration of a distribution, whether one is considering income, consumption or some other welfare indicators as observed by Oyekale, Oyekale and Adeoti, (2007). According to him, there was an increase in income disparity after the economic growth which Nigeria experienced between1965-1980s; unfortunately, it later increased the dimension of poverty in the country (Oluwatayo, 2008). These inequalities between he people in rural and urban areas in Nigeria or even between people living within the cities is remarkably high, as even those who living in the cities areas are not a thriving sector in Nigeria.
There is no doubt that a lot of measures need to be put in place as suggested by Adebayo,; Sani (2013, p. p.:16) that: To solve insecurity in the country, thinking and strategies need to be developed; corruption has to be stopped by all means; the government and the people need to develop trust and work new security policies, together to resolve the insecurity situation for Nigeria to move forward.
Therefore, weak judicial system also causes corruption and it also translated into insecurity in the country. Most often, judicial systems are weak as a result of greed and lack of patriotism and respect to the laws of the land. In such situations, it is the poor people that suffer the brunt of injustices as the rich especially the politicians always stand a better chance of getting justice over the poor.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Introduction
This chapter introduced the description of the adopted research methodology which was applied during the study. It unravels the research design, population of the study, sample population, research instruments, instrument validity, and instrument reliability.
Research Design
According to Creswell (2016), he asserted that research design is “the process of narrowing or focusing your perspective for a particular study”; Research design can also be seen as an outline or scheme which functions as a vital framework to the researcher in his research to gather data for his study.
In research, research designs are adopted to describe how the variables of the proposed study will be discussed, controlled, or modified to collect the data needed for this investigation.
An explanatory research design would be used in this study. Explanatory research is primarily concerned with figuring out how and why things happen, as well as making predictions about what might happen in the future. Using this method in this section was necessary because of the quantitative approach taken in the study and the nature of the research question, which calls for a conclusion about the risk factors to late marriage among male of agbaja community.
Population of Study
The entire number of units from whom evaluation representatives are drawn is referred to as the population (Akhtar, 2016). As defined by Saunders et al. (2015), a population is the total number of cases from which a sample is selected. Using media experts and individuals, this research aimed to assess utilizing media reportage in south east to check security problems.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
This chapter is targeted at analyzing the data collected adopting a simple percentage and frequency presentation. The presentation is done in a tabular form for clarity and easy understanding. To get the research data, 145 questionnaires were distributed.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary
The study explored the effectiveness of media reportage in addressing security problems in South East Nigeria. Based on the results presented in the table, it is clear that the majority of respondents believed that media reportage can help hold security agencies accountable for their actions. This finding is significant as it indicates that the media can play a crucial role in promoting transparency and accountability in addressing security challenges in the region. The study also revealed that while many respondents believed that media reportage could improve transparency, they were less convinced that the media provides adequate coverage of security-related issues. This finding suggests that there is a need for media outlets to focus more on reporting security-related issues in the South East region of Nigeria.
The study’s findings suggest that media reportage can be an effective tool in promoting accountability and transparency in addressing security challenges in South East Nigeria. However, to realize its full potential, media outlets must increase their coverage of security-related issues and continue to hold security agencies accountable for their actions. It is also worth noting that the study’s findings may have practical implications for policymakers, security agencies, and media practitioners in the region. For example, policymakers and security agencies may consider leveraging the media’s role in promoting accountability and transparency to enhance their efforts in addressing security challenges. Meanwhile, media practitioners may need to adopt innovative strategies to increase their coverage of security-related issues in the region.
Conclusion
The study on utilizing media reportage in South East Nigeria to check security problems indicates that media reportage can play a crucial role in promoting accountability and transparency in addressing security challenges. The study found that the majority of respondents believed that media reportage can help hold security agencies accountable for their actions and can lead to improvements in transparency. However, the study also revealed that respondents were less convinced that the media provides adequate coverage of security-related issues to promote transparency. This finding suggests that there is a need for media outlets to focus more on reporting security-related issues in the South East region of Nigeria. The study’s findings suggest that media reportage can be an effective tool in promoting accountability and transparency in addressing security challenges in South East Nigeria. To realize this potential, media outlets must increase their coverage of security-related issues, and security agencies must work closely with the media to enhance their efforts in addressing security challenges. The study’s findings may have practical implications for policymakers, security agencies, and media practitioners in the region.
Recommendations
Media outlets should focus more on reporting security-related issues in the South East region of Nigeria. This will enhance the media’s role in promoting accountability and transparency in addressing security challenges.
Security agencies should work closely with the media to enhance their efforts in addressing security challenges. This will promote trust between the media and security agencies and increase the effectiveness of media reportage in promoting accountability and transparency.
Policymakers should consider leveraging the media’s role in promoting accountability and transparency to enhance their efforts in addressing security challenges in South East Nigeria. This will enable policymakers to gain insight into the public’s perception of security-related issues and implement policies that are more effective in addressing these challenges.
Media practitioners may need to adopt innovative strategies to increase their coverage of security-related issues in the region. This could involve training journalists to cover security-related issues more effectively or partnering with security agencies to access information that is not publicly available.
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