THE just concluded presidential election has raised a fundamental issue with regard to the media coverage of political activities, during the build-up to the poll, and about the need to chart a new course by affected media organisation(s). Recently, the Shekarau for Nigeria (SfN) Campaign Organisation formally protested an alleged unfair treatment by the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), over the latters alleged rejection of its commercial, packaged for the presidential candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau.Curiously, the management of the public-owned national broadcast station has maintained a deafening silence over the accusation. That is enough to lend credence to SfNs allegation of lack of fair play and an uneven political playing field for its candidate. If the protest is established, then it is an unfortunate situation that should be remedied. That may even call for an apology to the SfN Organisation if the NTA would not be accused of bias against opposition candidates.The Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC), which the SfN Organisation plans to approach for redress, should be guided by the NBC Code which states in Article 3.3.3 that, all sides to any issue of public interest shall be equitably presented to ensure fairness. Similar provisions are enshrined in the Electoral Act 2010 (with 2011 amendments). The SfN had felt strongly that its television commercial was rejected; that NTAs attitude negates all principles of fair play, clearly aimed at denying an opposition candidate equal rights to its airwaves despite paying for same.The advert reportedly has to do with an extract from Shekaraus contribution at a presidential debate organised by a private cable broadcasting network, the NN24, on March 18 which generated so much controversy. SfN had complained of being turned back by NTA more than once. The campaign body was first asked to produce a No Objection statement from NN24 to avoid copyright infringement. The SfN did just that, with the NN24 agreeing to the terms of request.With that hurdle cleared, the NTA further raised the bar: the Shekarau Organisation was asked to make arrangements for NTA cameramen to record Mallam Shekaraus statement themselves, a demand the advertiser considered ridiculous. At that point, the advertiser was sufficiently justified to suspect foul play. Was NTA deliberately placing a brick wall in the way of the presidential candidate of the ANPP As a public institution, the NTA authorities ought to have considered the political implications of their action.Besides, Article 3.4 of the Political Broadcast Manual of the NTA states for instance the responsibility of the media house in the public broadcasting of political campaign documentary or advertisement viz: The power of the television to influence political choices dictates that the NTA insulates itself from charges of wittingly, or otherwise placing the power in favour of one side against anothermake balance and fairness the standard of political broadcast by ensuring equal or equitable presentation of alternative or opposing views or interests.The NTA may easily be accused of ignoring its own rules. The argument that the SfN Organisation might have intended to score a cheap political point over the other candidates that featured in the debate by seeking to promote its candidate alone, is unfounded. There is no basis to fault the SfN initiative as long as other candidates were not barred from using the same method and platform to gain audience for their candidates.In the coverage of political campaigns or candidates, a certain level of responsibility is required of the media always. Regrettably, most media organizationselectronic and printare guilty of partisanship in the current dispensation, especially the public media, resulting in a situation where the NBC has had to sanction about 26 broadcast stations. Media houses and their managers should strive to maintain fairness, balance, accuracy and ensure objectivity as much as possible as demanded by professional ethics and the enabling laws guiding media coverage of the electoral process.In particular, over-bearing government interference in the operations of public media organisations should be discouraged. Public media institutions should divorce themselves from acting as appendages of governments in power; by the same token, the private media should eschew partisanship. Every citizen or group has the right to be heard. Fairness must apply in all circumstanceseven beyond this periodto avoid deliberately injuring the feelings of an individual or groups.
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