The 2020 World Press Freedom Index, compiled by Reporters sans frontieres (Reporters Without Borders), an international non-governmental organisation, has ranked Nigeria 115th out of 180 countries.
The index cited the killings and jailing of journalists as examples of the country’s incessant attempts to silence the press. It described Nigeria as a ‘Climate of Violence’, hence the vulnerability of journalists.
It said, “Nigeria is now one of West Africa’s most dangerous and difficult countries for journalists, who are often spied on, attacked, arbitrarily arrested or even killed.
“Two journalists have been shot dead while covering the Islamic Movement in Nigeria protests – one in July 2019 and the other in January 2020 – without any proper investigation with the aim of identifying those responsible.
“The campaign for the elections in which President Muhammadu Buhari obtained another term in February 2019 was marked by an unprecedented level of disinformation, especially on social media, much of it the work of officials within the two main parties.”
The statement further said the defence of journalism in the country is very poor and the protection of journalists is nothing short of abysmal.
“With more than 100 independent newspapers, Africa’s most populous nation enjoys real media pluralism but covering stories involving politics, terrorism or financial embezzlement by the powerful is very problematic. Journalists are often denied access to information by government officials, police and sometimes the public itself.
“The all-powerful regional governors are often their most determined persecutors and act with complete impunity. In 2018, one governor had part of the premises of a radio station razed after a series of reports criticizing his handling of local affairs.
“The police also detained a journalist for several days in an attempt to identify his sources. Online freedom is restricted by a 2015 cyber-crime law that is widely used to arrest and prosecute journalists and bloggers in an arbitrary manner,” it added.
Last year, the country was ranked 120th, five places below what it is this year.
The top 10 countries were Norway, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Netherlands, Jamaica, Costa Rica, Switzerland, New Zealand and Portugal while North Korea, a country well known for the silence of journalists sits at 180th.
