In the last week, the government of President Tinubu has come out fighting and rebuffing a newspaper report on its performance published in The Guardian newspaper. Followed by a sharp criticism of an editorial by The Punch newspaper by the spokesperson of the ruling All Progressives Congress. Rather than address the root causes of what was contained in the reports, they are raising hair and accusing the media of generating hysteria and inciting a forceful change in the government.

The language in their rejoinders was aggressive and name-calling. It even poked at their professional and ethical conduct. Many are wondering what could be responsible for this aggression against the media. But they welcome this approach albeit intellectual and consider it preferable to using the security agencies to hound and unleash attacks on journalists and their media organisations. It is necessary to state that every attempt to gag the press and intimidate it into silence would not fly. Journalism as the fourth estate of the realm is an essential ingredient of democracy.

In his latest statement against both The Guardian newspaper and Punch newspaper, Mr. Felix Morka, APC National Publicity Secretary wrote: “The Punch Editorial Board’s heap of vile propaganda against the administration’s economic reform agenda, and The Guardian Newspaper’s recent reckless call for military intervention in government are alarming and capable of undermining Nigeria’s democratic progress, economic growth and national security.”

“The All Progressives Congress (APC) vehemently condemns The Punch’s elevation of misinformation and spread of mass hysteria as editorial policy and The Guardian’s unpatriotic call for military intervention. Both positions stand in betrayal and disservice to journalism and democracy.

“The Punch Editorial Board’s latest diatribe against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration’s economic policies is a reprehensible display of journalistic malfeasance, riddled with egregious factual errors, context-free critiques, and a brazen move to sabotage the government’s bold reform agenda. By deliberately distorting the context of the petrol price increase and subsidy removal, The Punch betrayed its duty to inform the public, fueling misinformation and mass hysteria. Its willful ignorance of the global oil market dynamics and Nigeria’s fiscal realities is appalling.

“The facts are clear – petrol subsidy removal and the resultant petrol price increase are inevitable and crucial steps towards curbing corruption, inefficiency, and freeing resources for investment in productive sectors of the economy. The government’s economic reform plan includes comprehensive measures to support small businesses, and social welfare programs, and to stimulate economic growth.

“The Punch’s real agenda is to shield corrupt elites from accountability and undermine Nigeria’s progress. Its editorial is a pernicious attempt to discredit President Tinubu’s administration, rather than offer constructive criticism. Its editorial did not offer any shred of policy thought different from the administration’s transformative economic policies. It simply manipulated data and information that only seek to further exploit the momentary difficulties that our people are going through.

“The Punch Editorial of October 23, 2024, is a disturbing affront to responsible journalism. That piece was nothing short of rough stitches of misinformation and distortions designed to fuel mass hysteria against President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s economic policies and advance the organization’s fixation bias in service of base interests.

The termination of military dictatorship and return to civilian democracy in 1999 marked a major turning point in the country’s political history, heralding new prospects for growth, progress, and democratic consolidation. The journey away from the dark days of military dictatorship towards a more vibrant democracy has been bold and strident even when it has not been flawless. Flawless is not and will never be the gold standard of democracy anywhere. Democratic progress can only be incremental, served by the relentless pursuit of democracy’s finest constitutive elements and values.

The Guardian newspaper has rejected the claim by Mr Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President, Information and Strategy in its lead story titled ‘Misery, harsh policies driving Nigerians to desperate choices’, published on Friday, October 25, 2024.

Mr. Onanuga’s statement claimed that the Guardian newspaper, by its news report “openly incites unrest against President Bola Tinubu’s administration and advocates regime change under the guise of journalism.” adding that “the inflammatory headline and content deviate from responsible reporting.”

The Guardian dismissed Onanuga’s assertion, tagging it a patent misrepresentation of its report stating that: “The story is a factually balanced, dispassionate, well-researched, and intensive report chronicling Nigeria’s civilian administration from inception to the current state of affairs, without any atom of hateful or inciting elements, remarks, innuendoes, and or connotations against the national and sub-national governments of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“The publication simply aggregated the concerns of Nigerians across all classes on the troubling state of the nation with the expectation that the government will take the necessary steps to address the challenges. There is nothing in the report that advocates, propagates, endorses or suggests a military overthrow of the current government, as suggested by the Special Adviser.

“The only people more opposed to logic than Bayo Onanuga and his response to the Guardian story, are those people who expect any objective thought from the controversial politician who works as a spokesperson for the Tinubu administration. It is impossible to expect any genuine concern for Nigeria’s democracy from someone whose motivation is to show loyalty to the administration so that they can keep the job they were appointed to”

Both the government and the APC should listen to the voice of reason contained in the newspapers they complained about. If they feel any media house has committed any unprofessional infraction, complaints should be packaged as a petition and forwarded to the National Ombudsman for investigation and adjudication.