Censorship Via Press Briefing

“The government’s control of information flow was accomplished by a more subtle device called monthly press briefing … but it was amazing that news executives had gone along with it for so long; the duty of an editor was to try hard to get information to the public with minimum delay … the rarer, the better.” 

Even the military realized the power of the press, hence the mov by the Muhammed-Obasanjo regime to take over the Daily Times and the New Nigerian. After changing the Federal Commissioner for Information more than once, General Obasanjo decided to makr himself the Federal Commissioner for Information to ensure proper control of the sensitive ministry. But the government’s contro; of information flow was accomplished by a more subtle device called monthly press briefing which was initiated under General Muhammed in 1975 and continued during General Obasanjo’s tenure in office. The press briefing was addressed by the Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquaters. Once a month, on Thursdays, the Federal Military  Government invited (more like a summon) media executives to the Dodan Barracks where they were told selectively what the government wanted the press to tell the nation, and how. The arrangement was that the briefing would assist the editors, since only top executives were asked to come down, in understanding complex issues facing the nation. Except the government wanted the information made available to the editors passed on to the public, the arrangement forbade the media executives from disseminating such information. It’s hard to say whether news executives who attended those briefings realized that their journalistic interests were not served by those briefings which necessarily served the purpose of the government.

One, any arrangement in which the government manoeuvres the media executives to sit on information was of necessity bad for the press. Two, media executives who went along with such an arrangement were an unwitting ally in suppression of Information. The curious arrangement which spanned the life of the Muhammed-Obasanjo government had continued under the administration of President Shagari. The invitation, written on the stationery of the Ministry of Information, went out every month to editors of all Nigerian newspapers and executives of the nation’s electronic media. The meeting, which was called Presidential Press Briefing, took place on the first Wednesday of every month at the State House, Ribadu Road. Since its inception, the briefing had been handled in an able manner by Vice-President Alex Ekwueme, who later hosted tasteful lunch for the executives at his Ikoyi residence. On the government side at the briefing which took place in an oval room were: the presidential adviser on Information, the president’s chief press secretary, the director of Information and other high officials of the Department of Information. The setting was relaxed, the media executives were seated on the side of the table facing the vice-president and the government officials. The vice-president opened the briefing by telling the journalists what the government was doing about the most important issues facing the nation, at least as the Federal Government saw it.

At one such briefing, the vice-president circulated the proposals of the Federal Government on new salary scales for workers in the service of the government. But the editors sat on the story because of the gentleman’s agreement which said that all information received at the presidential briefings should remain confidential. On another occasion, the vice-president told media executives about the reports of the Okigbo Commission on revenue allocation and the Irikefe Commission on the so-called missing N2.8 billion NNPC money. The two reports submitted to the Federal Government constituted the most important pieces of information in the country at the time. Although the vice-president told the media executives the essence of two reports, no news organization reported the stories because of the understanding that such information received at the briefing should remain secret. For example, it was possible for a reporter of, say, the Sunday Concord or the Nigerian Standard to have received the contents of the two reports, before the briefing or subsequently the newspaper would not be able to use such information because government would then think that the editor of the paper breaching the confidentially of the briefing.

It was amazing that news executives had gone along with arrangement for so long. The duty of an editor was to try hard to get information from government and other sources to the public was minimum delay. An editor who got his hands on the Irikefe Commission’s report before a white paper on it was issued hit a get mine. The rarer the story, the more important. One would have thought that the president, because of the nature of the presidential system, would choose the path of holding monthly or bi-monthly press conferences during which journalists would be free to ask how many questions on current issues of importance to the nation. At such conference, the press would be free to ask the president the content of the reports submitted to him by the two commissions. Of course the president would be able to tell the nation, if the press conference was televised, that he would not be able to talk about the reports yet. In any case, it didn’t make for open government to continue to the presidential briefing as the highest ridge of information between the government and the nation. Of course, that arrangement good for the government, it was another thing if the media would continue to tolerate it. 

On the ‘Numena’ called ‘Death’

Dear Dele,
You wrote in the Sunday Concord about ‘death’ something ago. The article was quite inspiring. Since then, I had realized that it was a must that I should write to you. Dear Editor, I think we should have a shown audience, so that we can discuss on the ‘Numena’ of death. For decade, I conducted spiritual researches into the eternal world search of God and meaning to the various truths that polared of existence. I eventually had contact with God and with some angel. One of the questions I intended to settle was “why do we die?” a “how do we die?”

The answers to this question were strikingly unprecedented. Since the Bible and the Quran deliberately refused to answer these questions I believed that I have these as additional contribution to scientific, philosophical and theological knowledge. The experience was covered in a chapter on my book: “Monocausality and Religious Universalism.” If you are interested, we must talk.

Very sincerely,
Muhammed Iginla,
President & Managing Director,
Adult Development Centre, Zaria.

Dear Mr. Iginla,
We may be able to talk yet, at least to ask you what God looks like and what the two of you and the angels talked about. See you.
Dele Giwa

©Sunday Concord, July 6, 1980
(Pp.76-79)