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GOODWILL MESSAGE BY THE DELTA STATE HONOURABLE COMMISSIONER FOR INFORMATION, DR. IFEANYI OSUOZA, AT THE FIRST QUARTER OF NIGERIAN ARMY CIVIL-MILITARY COOPERATION MEDIA CHAT 2024

Let me thank the Commander, 63 Brigade, Nigerian Army, Asaba, Delta State, for not only inviting me, but also making me a Special Guest of Honour at the First Nigerian Army Civil Military Cooperation Chat 2024, organised by the Army Headquarters’ Department of Civil-Military Affairs.It is significant to underscore further that this is the first quarter chat being organised by the Nigerian Army to achieve civil-military cooperation.

This decision is commendable and should be applauded because it’s an indication that the leadership of the Nigerian Army understands the crucial importance of establishing and nurturing positive relationships with the civil population towards building and achieving the all-important civil-military understanding. No doubt, such a relationship will help a great deal to expose to the people the importance of the role of the military as a strategic professional group whose job function is well defined to engender and support the growth of societal peace as well as secure the defence of the territorial integrity of Nigeria against external aggression.

The chat initiative is, therefore, an important Public Relations tool for nurturing positive relationships between the military and the civilian populace. It, therefore, has the potential to let the military high command to get to understand how the mind of the people whose existence they are to protect, works. This is because the military-civil relationship is supposed to be symbiotic; while the people need the military to protect them against external aggression and to crush internal insurrection so as to be able to live in peace and pursue their respective endeavours of keeping body and soul together and making progress in their daily living, the military needs the people to cooperate with it by ensuring that they conduct themselves in reasonable and orderly manner as well as make information available when they notice untoward situations that run contrary to peace and security of life and property. It is against this background that the Nigerian Army must be commended for the choice of the theme of the 2024 chat, entitled: “Imperative of Military – Media Partnership for the Attainment of National Security.”

The theme is perfect and timely, given the times we are in in Nigeria and the skirmishes being experienced across the country, all of which require military intervention. It is therefore stating the obvious that never has the military been tasked so much in Nigeria than now. So much so that the challenges are enormous, requiring the intervention of the military to help ward off and put an end to the growing menace of militant, terrorist, and kidnapping groups that have laid siege to nearly all parts of the country. This is why I again commend the Nigerian Army for considering it worthwhile to partner with the media. That the media is powerful is beyond contention. And this is to the extent that the media continues to play the role of an information activist for an informed and responsible public. This is why the media deserves to be studied in a more profound and sustained sense by promoters, actors, and facilitators of democracy and good governance. This is crucial because of the unique function of the media in providing information to the public, and confirming the actions of the government on issues of National Security. As it is well known, the role of the media is to provide the people with information which makes them grasp and understand security matters. The media can be used as a tool to rightly inform and replace misinformation that hampers Nigeria’s relations with its neighbouring countries and helps to douse tension.

The Congress of the United States of America underscored the crucial and essential role of the media when, in the 1789 Joint Resolution, it proposed 12 amendments, 10 of which were ratified by three-quarters of the State Legislatures on December 15, 1791. Among the amendments is the one on the “Freedom of the Press”, where the Congress stated expressly that “Congress shall make no laws abridging the freedom of speech or the Press.” In other words, the Congress of the US understands the critical role that information plays in educating, enlightening, and making people aware of things and issues that come up each time. Becoming aware of such information helps the people to make an analysis of the information so provided, form opinions, and make decisions that will make them live their lives meaningfully. Also, in Nigeria, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, also underscored the importance of the media by giving journalists a role to play. Section 22 of the Nigeria Constitution provides that: “The Press, radio, television and other agencies of the mass media shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in this Chapter and uphold the responsibility of the Government to the people.” In other words, the responsibility to make the government and its agencies and officials accountable to the people has been given to the media practitioners.

So, given the contemporary issues in Nigeria today, where you find journalists asking questions and seeking the response of appropriate officials to issues, it is not that the press is hostile or trying to poke their nose into what erroneously is believed not to be their concern, no, it indeed concerns them. They are the bridge linking the Government, its agencies, and officials to the people. Therefore, the question they are asking is in furtherance of the Constitutional responsibility thrusted on them. So, rather than see Journalists as antagonists or busybodies, it is imperative that Governments and its agencies put in place mechanisms to relate with the press. And one way of doing this is through the mechanism of Press or Media Relations.

For the avoidance of doubt, Media Relations refer to the relationship that an organisation develops with the Journalists. Experts contend that Media Relations aims to educate through the media (newspapers, radio, television, and other forms of Mass media). It involves working with such for the purpose of informing the public of an organisation, like the Military, of its mission, policies, and practices in a positive, consistent, and credible manner.

The imperatives of Military-Media Partnership for the Attainment of National Security can be seen in the fact that the Journalists, through their mediums, help to influence high-level national and international decision-making. They serve information, analyse information, educate, and enlighten through incisive opinions and analysis. In the process, the people form their opinions and take a stand on issues. Thus, the unique coverage and impact of the media can be accelerated, thereby, to promote and expand security awareness among the people and for morale building.

The media serves as a bridge between an organisation like the Military and its stakeholders. Information about Military activities, the people receive through media publications in newspapers and magazines and through the electronic media of radio, television, and the new media. The media has thus proven to be a tool that influences the minds, ideas, shapes opinions, behaviours, and attitudes of the people.

Please take note, however, that it is a misconception to believe that the press is hostile. Experts have observed that the media is neither belligerent nor friendly, but they only hunt for news. It was also pointed out that the above observation is generally accurate of the journalists, who are always out hunting for fresh, exciting information. Even with the uneasy relationship, the journalist and public relations persons should cooperate with each other for their mutual benefit.

While I congratulate the Military for taking this decisive step to court and establish a relationship with journalists and their media houses, it is an imperative that is necessary, and that cannot be overlooked because of the dynamic nature of society and the fact that the Military, an agency of the Federal Government, falls within the category that the Nigerian Constitution, as amended, granted the power to hold accountable in Section 22. Establishing this all-important relationship will provide the Military the opportunity to communicate with the people with a view to getting them to understand what it is doing, clarifying grey areas, thereby carrying them along for them to have a buy-in into the mission of the Military. The media, through the journalists, is always seeking information about things, and when it is about military matters, it becomes crucially incumbent on it to provide such information.

Let me conclude by requesting that both parties (military and media) should make the partnership being established today a continuously robust and enduring relationship for the benefit of Nigeria and Nigerians, and the upward growth of the Nigerian Military.

Thank you for your attention.

Dr. Ifeanyi M. Osuoza,

Commissioner for Information,

Delta State.