The resolve by the Federal Government to ensure that there is sanity on social media has generated a lot of debates and (mis) interpretations, especially among the critical mainstream media. Information and Culture minister, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in this interview with Kabir Garba, clarifies that the efforts have become imperative in order to preserve the media profession and safeguard the nation.
How does government view the brouhaha trailing its resolve to ensure that there is sanity on the social media?
The controversy generated by the decision of the Federal Government to restore sanity into social media is a very welcome development. Welcome in the sense that it has brought to the front burner of national discourse, a matter which is of critical importance to the very existence of Nigeria and to our unity. I say it is welcome, one, there are those who are very vehemently against it and there are those who are also very passionate about it. To that extent, it means that it is a matter that is germane and it is a matter that ought to be discussed.
However, the Federal Government is not backing down on its resolve to regulate social media. Why are we not backing down? We are not backing down because not one person, even those who are vehemently against the regulation has come out to say that social media is not a purveyor of fake news, that social media is not a purveyor of hate speech. Two, not one person has said that social media that is promoting fake news and hate speech is not a danger to our national unity.
Until we can be convinced that if social media continues to be a merchant of fake news, they continue to be a merchant of hate speech they are not a danger to our unity, it is only then we are going to back down! But as long as everybody agrees that fake news and hate speech can threaten the very unity of this country; it can exploit our political fault-lines; set one group against the other and cause mayhem, we are not backing down. Or even when you look at it from a personal level, there are so many innocent people whose lives have been destroyed by fake news!
So, what are we saying? We are saying that we want to safeguard the freedom of everybody to express his views subject to not preaching fake news or hate speech. We are not tampering with the freedom of the press, we are not tampering with the constitutional provision, but even the constitution says that you are free to express your views, however; it is subject to national unity. So all the people saying that the Federal Government is trying to gag the media, no, they have missed it.
Two, a thorough bred journalist has nothing to fear from either the regulation of the broadcast media or the regulation of social media. But the truth of the matter is that those people on social media are they really journalists? I think this is the point people have missed. Are they journalists? Are they bound by the ethics of the profession? If they are bound by the ethics of the profession, no matter which platform you use to practice your profession, whether it is print, broadcast or social media, if you are a trained journalist, you will know that there are certain fundamental things that are sacrosanct in this business.
Now, when they get news, do they cross-check their facts? Do they go to the relevant authorities to cross-check? Do they even do their own research? They do not even talk to their peers! But today what we find, which is very dangerous is that, even in some sectors of the mainstream media, not to be outdone by bloggers; not to be outdone by social media commentators are also threading the path of fake news and hate speech. I do not see what the brouhaha is all about.
We say that no trained journalist or professional journalist has anything to fear from the regulation of social media. But those who think that this new technology can be used to destabilise the country; it can be used to pitch one tribe against the other, it can be used to distort information that we are going to go after them! We are going to regulate it and we are not alone in this: Singapore has done it, the UK is doing it. China and Russia have done it. We do not have to wait for this country to be set on fire by some irresponsible social media commentators before we do the proper thing. I do not see what all the noise is all about!
Are we saying that because there is freedom of speech, so, hate speech should become free speech? No! Are we saying because our Constitution guarantees freedom of expression, so a person can just stay in the corner of his room and manufacture a story that is not true and set one part of the country against the other? So, we are saying, we would go ahead and do our best to bring sanity to the social media. It is not just going to be business as usual.
You cannot just seat in the corner of your room, because you have a phone and you have airtime and then say that Yoruba are killing Igbo in Oshodi! Do you know what that means? If that news goes out, all Yoruba in Onitsha are not safe. All Yoruba in Agbor, in Enugu, are not safe. What are we talking about? It is too dangerous to be left unchecked! Only anarchists and unpatriotic Nigerians would have complained about our efforts to regulate the social media, because virtually everybody, in one way or the other, has been victims, even on a personal level, have been victims of this unregulated social media, and everywhere in the world, people are taking steps to sanitise it.
You can be critical of government, of course, yes, that is your role and we like it, because when you are critical of the government, you help us to know that we are not doing certain things right and when you are critical of government, you give us the opportunity to also explain, probably, what you do not understand. But being critical of the government is different from being reckless and setting out deliberately to preach hate, to preach falsehood. This is what we are after! We are not after an honest, professional journalist.
Many mainstream newspapers have written critical editorials about this government, we have not tampered with their freedom. Ditto the mainstream TV and radio stations. As long as you do not breach the broadcasting code, you are free to say whatever you want to say, but you must respect the broadcasting code.
It is not true that this government is after journalists or trying to gag the media, it is not true! Those who are comparing, probably, what it used to be in 10 or five years ago with what is happening today, have forgotten that the explosion of technology has actually blurred the distinction between a trained journalist and an anarchist. Before, we knew who journalists were. We knew what qualification you needed to have to become a journalist, as well as the bodies you needed to belong to.
Bodies such as the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) and so on. They are self-regulating bodies. They discipline themselves. But today, how many of the guys who are on social media are members of the NUJ, NGE, NAWOJ, and NPAN?
Before, when we had problems, we knew who and where to go to. We could go to all these bodies because they also knew if they were not self-regulated, they could be self-destroyed, they were even very strict on their own members. But today, the guy that just posts a comment or story, is he a journalist? Is everybody that posts a story on social media a journalist? This is the issue! So, we are very clear in our minds of what we are doing and we know we are doing it not only in the interest of just the government but also of Nigeria!
The Guardian
