Communique
Issued at the end of a One-Day Stakeholders’ Roundtable on the Media Monitoring Report on Trends in Coverage of 2023 Electoral Process, held on Wednesday March 8, 2023 at Echelon Heights Hotel, Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Preamble The International Press Centre (IPC), Lagos-Nigeria, the lead implementing partner of Component 4 (Support to Media) of the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria – Phase 2 (EUSDGN II) project, convened a one-day stakeholders’ roundtable on the outcome of the media monitoring report on the trends in coverage of 2023 electoral process (January 2023) on Wednesday, March 8, 2023, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. The roundtable brought together media stakeholders to analyse the issues arising from the trends in reportage of 15 print/online newspapers and observation on the activities on INEC website/twitter platform for the period January 2023. The roundtable also addressed related issues of media coverage of the 2023 electoral process, especially ahead of the Governorship and House of Assembly elections following which the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage and the Safety Advisory on the Coverage of Elections were also presented and discussed. The roundtable was attended by the leadership of media professional bodies/associations; reporters from the print, broadcast and online mediums and representatives of the academia and the civil society. Those in attendance and who delivered goodwill remarks and presentations included Mrs. Susan Serekara-Nwikhana, Chairperson of the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Rivers State chapter and Comrade Job Stanley, Chairman of Rivers State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), who also doubled as a discussant of the expert review by Dr. Dike Harcourt Whyte of Rivers State University. The other discussant was Mrs. Emem Okon, the Executive Director of Kebetkache Women Development & Resource Centre. IPC’s Communication Officer, Ms. Olutoyin Ayoade, delivered the welcome remarks while the Executive Director, Mr. Lanre Arogundade made a presentation on the Conflict Sensitivity and Safety Consciousness in the context of the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage. Observations: Following the presentations, the participants observed that: Recommendations: In line with the requirements of the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage and other regulatory frameworks like the Nigeria Broadcasting Code and the Electoral Act 2022 as well as the IPC Safety Advisory, the participants recommended that journalists and other media professionals should in the aftermath of the presidential and National Assembly elections and ahead of the governorship and state assembly elections strive to: Finally, the participants called on the government, the law enforcement and security agents, the political parties, the Independent National Electoral Commission and media proprietors to ensure that they provide the enabling environment for journalists to professionally report the electoral processes and elections. SGD: Melody Akinjiyan Press Freedom/Project Officer, IPC melodyakinjiyan@ipcng.org
