As Nigerian democracy and the electioneering process continue to encounter challenges leading to dwindling trust and public participation, key operational leaders in the media industry have been tasked with adopting a new approach to enhance professionalism and collaboration to bridge observed gaps in the country’s electioneering process.

The top media executives and leaders, who are important decision-makers in newsrooms, were urged to prioritise ethical practices instead of compromising them to make democracy more inclusive in Nigeria during a meeting organised by the International Press Centre (IPC) and Centre for Media and Society (CEMESO) in Abuja on Monday, 16th June, 2025, aimed at improving media professionalism and teamwork for democratic governance in Nigeria.

The event, which was organised with the support of the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN II) to ensure that Nigerian democracy experiences pluralism, participation, and adequate representation of the minority groups, was facilitated by Mr. Martin Oloja, the immediate past Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief of the Guardian Newspaper, and the Executive Secretary of the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria, Dr Yemisi Bamgbose, who left no stone unturned in addressing the successes of the media and the slacks of the media in focusing on the germane issues that will reshape the country’s democracy to a desired standard.

Mr Arogundade and Mr Onoja

Mr. Oloja, keen on correcting the observed past failures of media practitioners to set the agenda for key players in the electoral process, pointed out that this neglect has led to a lack of collective participation from women, youths, and disability groups; he criticises media executives, who are decision-makers in newsrooms, for not paying close attention to the electioneering process and instead focusing only on election days.

According to him, the lack of media awareness of these critical issues has given the politicians and other key electoral players the leverage to govern the country without any accountability, thereby making the media a fellow culprit in the democratic flaws and ineffective governance the country is battling after the choosing of leaders in successive election periods.

“The current issue we are facing in Nigeria is that the media has stopped taking the reporting of the electioneering process as a serious matter. Instead, editors and managers of the newsrooms pay attention to election day, and after reporting, they move on. This is where the rain started beating us.

“As a result of this, the media has stopped reporting stories that will make the government respect us, not fear us. For instance, if investigative stories are done, there is no way politicians will respect us; as a result, we will regain our power to hold the government accountable, as good journalism matters to make the country a better place by encouraging journalistic legwork.

While addressing the ethical imbalance in media practices and its implications for Mr. Oloja, he also encouraged media leaders to collaborate with their reporters by maintaining objectivity in journalism and improving their capacity for issue-based reporting, which will help restore public trust that is rapidly dwindling in the country’s election process.

Recognising the impacts of capacity building and training for journalists, Mr. Oloja encouraged the media executives not to be complacent, urging them to prioritise journalistic training to augment their professionalism and meet the expected standard of practice for the profession.

Speaking of the expectations from the key media operational leaders, Dr. Yemisi Bamgbose urged them to focus on playing an active role in the voters’ education to create a balanced democracy. He also reminded the media practitioners of their responsibility as the intermediary between the authority and the citizens.

“What we are discussing is the role the media could play in strengthening the electoral process, in making sure that everybody is included in the picture. This involves educating women, youths, and people with disabilities about voting, a process known as ‘voter education.’

“So all this is pulled together to deepen democracy. You know that without enlightenment, people will not have the correct information, so the media leaders are expected to educate the people on what they need to know. Democracy aims for full participation, which necessitates the inclusion of people from various strata. Therefore, we must ensure that media executives and their respective media houses—whether in print, online, or broadcast—are performing their duties effectively without any compromise.

He also encouraged the media houses to begin to set up separate beats and departments that specifically focus on democracy, the voting system, and the electioneering process in the country, stating that the media’s commitment to the job cannot be complete without a balanced democracy and good government.

Speaking on the background of the issues affecting democracy and the reason for IPC’s intervention, Mr. Lanre Arogundade, the Executive Director of the International Press Centre,  maintained that even though the two organisations have met with media practitioners in the past two years, they have observed less impact of the activities, as the reporters have pointed at media executives as the decision-making body, hence the need for such an interface.

Mr Arogundade at the event

“After two years of working on EU-SDGNII, experts have closely examined the results and overall effects of the project by talking to our target audiences, including those who benefit from it and our partners, during their evaluation.” And this is the crux of the matter in the context of the background to this convening.’’

“This is because of their finding that while our interventions, including trainings, advocacies, development and dissemination of knowledge products, various roundtables, etc., have been quite substantial, the desired impact might not have been felt because of the challenge of the enabling environment,” he said.

He therefore stressed that the expectation from the operational leaders and gatekeepers is to play a decisive role in shaping narratives and setting standards that contribute to the impactful reporting of the electoral processes and elections in a way that can identify positive changes that can be attributed to a  collective effort.

Similarly, the Executive Director of the Centre for Media and Society, Dr. Akin Akingbulu, also urged the operational leaders to actively create opportunities for journalists trained under Component IV by integrating their enhanced skills to report the training the project has given them.

Dr Akingbulu at the event

“This means ensuring that the professional, ethical, and inclusive reporting techniques they’ve learnt directly influence your newsroom’s policies, programming, and editorial relationships. The success of our interventions hinges on your commitment to operationalising these improvements—whether through revised editorial guidelines, designated slots for fact-checked electoral coverage, or institutionalised peer review mechanisms.

“By doing so, you transform training into tangible impact, embedding higher standards of journalism into the DNA of your organisation. Simply put: “We’ve equipped your teams; now we need you to unleash their potential,” he concluded.