LEGAL PITFALLS IN POLITICAL REPORTING IN NIGERIA: SOME LESSONS FROM HISTORY (AMALGAMATION TO THE THIRD REPUBLIC)
Abstract
Politics is often characterised by turbulence, controversy and downright fighting. As a result, it could turn out to be a minefield for the reporter covering it. This paper examined the basic provisions and defences of three laws governing political reporting, namely, defamation, sedition and contempt of court. It also assembled and analysed some cases arising from them between 1914 and 1993. The study was a library research based on published law reports from various parts of Nigeria stored at the Nsukka High Court Library. Findings showed, inter alia, that the commonest offences political reporters were charged with were defamation and mounting a successful defence was very hard. Findings also indicated that perceived recklessness and repeated offences after warnings or calls for apology heightened the penalties for reporters accused under these laws. In addition, the law of sedition made it difficult to exercise the right of freedom of expression and the press without being accused of writing stories that were actionable by anti-democratic governments. The study recommended, among other things, prioritisation of truth and ethical reporting in general as the best way a reporter can navigate the turbulent waters of politics in Nigeria while discharging his or her duties.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
Acka, Benue Printing and Publishing Corporation v. S. J. I. Akure (1987). 1 Nigerian Weekly Law Reports, 74.
African Newspapers Ltd. and Others v. Federal Republic of Nigeria (1985). Nigerian Supreme Court Cases.
African Press Ltd. v. The Queen (1952). 14 West African Court of Appeal, 457.
Alexander, J. (2014). Notes towards adefinition of politics. Philosophy. (89)2, pp. 273 – 300. Published online by Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0031819113000855
Azikiwe, N. (1970). My odyssey: An autobiography. C. Hurst and Company.
Benson v. West African Pilot Ltd. (1966). Nigeria Monthly Law Reports, 3.
Bwala, U. Understanding contempt. (2019, Nov. 7). Vanguard newspaper. Retrieved from https://www.vanguardngr.com/2019/11/understanding-contempt/
Chapman v. Ellesmere (1932). 2 King’s Bench, 431.
Chukwu, C. O. (2015). Government broadcast media ownership pattern and media content in Nigeria – its threats to democracy. Research on Humanities and Social Sciences. 5(16), 1-11.
Director of Public Prosecutions v. Obi (1961). All Nigeria Law Reports, 184.
Duyile and Sketch Publishing Company Ltd. v. Kelly Ogunbayo and Sons Ltd. (1988). 3 Supreme Court of Nigeria Judgments, 1.
Enahoro v. Associated Newspapers of Nigeria Ltd. and S. N. Iweanya, Editor of Southern Nigeria Defender (1960). Western Nigeria Law Reports, 210.
Ezekwe v. Otomewo, Lessor and God’s Kingdom Society (1957). Western Region ofNigeria Law Reports, 130.
Fawehinmi, G. (1980). The law of contempt in Nigeria (Case book). Nigerian Law Publications Ltd.
Giwa v. Laogun and 5 others (1957). Supreme Court of Nigeria Law Reports, 165.
Guidelines for political reporting. (2020). National Media Commission, Accra, Ghana. Retrieved from http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/ghana/03698.pdf
He, X. & Lin, F. (2017). The losing media? An empirical study of defamation litigation in China - SSRN Papers. Centre for Chinese & Comparative Law Research Paper No. 2017/005, Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2914827
Ikoku v. Zik’s Press Ltd. and Another (1950). 19 Nigeria Law Reports, 112.
Karibi-Whyte, A. G. (1969). Seditious publications.In T. O. Elias, ed., (1969).Nigerian Press Law. Evans Brothers.
Lasswell, H. D. (2011). Politics: Who gets what, when, how. First published in 1936. Literary Licensing LLC
Manson, E. (1892). Cross-examination: A Socratic fragment. The Law Quarterly Review. 8,160 – 161.
McQuail, D. (2010). McQuail’s mass communication theory. 6th ed. Sage.
Merrill, J. C. (1974). The imperative of freedom: A philosophy of journalistic autonomy. Saunders of Toronto.
Nwabueze, C. (2015). Reporting: Principles, Approaches, Special Beats.Top Shelve Publishers.
Nwaobiala v. Police (1960). Federal Supreme Court, 243.
Nwosu, I. (1988). Seditious laws as chronic danger to freedom and democracy in Africa: Lessons from a comparative study of sedition laws in Nigeria, Britain and the United States. Paper presented at the Sixth Biennial Conference of the African Council on Communication Education (ACCE) held in Jos, Nigeria, October 24 – 30.
Nylander, A. V. J. (1969). Defamation and the Press.In T. O. Elias, ed., (1969).
Odutola v. West African Pilot Ltd. and P. C. Agbu (1960). Lagos Law Reports, 27.
Ogidi v. Police (1960). 5 Federal Supreme Court, 251.
Ohaja, E. U., Nwankpa, N. N., & Amadin, R. O. (2022). Reporting the parliament: A Nigerian case study. Brazilian Journalism Research (BJR) 18(2), 230-257.DOI: https://doi.org/10.25200/BJR.v18n2.2022.1478
Ohaja, E. U. (2015). The context and the imperative for ethical coverage of local government elections in Nigeria. Research on Humanities and Social Sciences. 5(12). 176-185. Retrieved from https://www.iiste.org/Journals/index.php/RHSS/article/view/23456/24171
Ohaja, E. U. (2004). Magazine article writing. John Letterman.
Okon v. C. O. R. Advocate and Others (1961). Law Reports of Eastern Nigeria, 21.
Okonkwor, R. C. (1983). Nigeria’s sedition laws – Their effect on free speech. Journalism Quarterly, 60, 54 – 60.
Okujeni, R., & Ohaja, E. U. (2019). Reflection of Nigeria Project challenges in press coverage of the campaigns for the 2015 general elections. Novena Journal of Communication. 10,130-141.
Oraegbunam, I. K., Okeke, M., & Igwe, C. J. (2018).Sedition under Nigerian criminal code: Effects on the right to freedom of expression. Library Research Journal 3(1),54-66. Retrieved from https://journals.unizik.edu.ng/index.php/lrj/article/download/52/52/106
Oweh v. The Amalgamated Press of Nigeria Ltd. (1957). Lagos Law Reports, 6.
R. v. Agwuna (1949). 12 West African Court of Appeal, 456.
R. v. Davies (1906). 1 King’s Bench, 40.
Regina v. Onwuegbuna and Associated Newspapers of Nigeria, Ltd. (1958). Eastern Nigeria Law Reports, 17.
Regina v. Service Press Ltd. (1952). 20 Nigeria Law Reports, 96.
Rewane, O. N. (1957). Contempt of court in Nigerian criminal law. Journal of African Law. 1(3), 172-185.
Rex v. Ojukoko (1926). 7 Nigeria Law Reports, 60.
Rex v. Horatio Jackson (1925). 6 Nigeria Law Reports, 49.
Schulte, H. H. (1981). Reporting public affairs. Macmillan.
Strömbäck, J., &Shehata, A. (2020). Political journalism. In Oxford Encyclopaedia of Journalism Studies,3,1319–1338. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330579241_Political_Journalism
The Amalgamated Press of Nigeria Ltd. and Others v. Oweh (1958). Supreme Court of Nigeria Law Reports, 163.
Udofa, I. J. (2011). Right to freedom of expression andthe law of defamation in Nigeria. International Journal of Advanced Legal Studies and Governance. 2(1),75-84.
Uyo v. National Press Ltd. and Others (1974). Nigerian Supreme Court Cases, 304.
Williams, Akintola and Awolowo v. West African Pilot Ltd. (1961). Western Nigeria Law Reports, 330.
Wolfgang, J. D., Vos, T. P., Kelling, K., & Shin, S. (2021). Political journalism and democracy: How journalists reflect political viewpoint diversity in their reporting, Journalism Studies, 22(10), 1339-1357. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1080/1461670X.2021.1952473
Zik’s Press Ltd. v. Alvan Ikoku (1951). 13 West African Court of Appeal, 188.
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
Copyright (c) 2024 Edith Ugochi Ohaja, PhD, Ugochukwu Justice Williams, Thankgod Ekene Ugwuanyi
ISSN (PRINT): 2682 - 6135
ISSN (ONLINE): 2682 - 6127
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.