Nigeria Times

By Dele Collins

In African cosmology, and in communities where the practice of voodooism is predominant and worshipped, the dance of the spirits is dreaded. On the night spirits decide to stage their festival in the world of darkness, those who have wronged the gods or committed abominable acts in the community relish the whole day in drabby mood. The carnival of dance of the spirits spares no culprit. It has no empathy for those who have incurred her wrath.

Therefore, the Lekki Toll Gate incident and its aftermath has invited the dance of the spirits. The action is already on course and the spirits are spiritedly haunting for the crafters, purveyors, promoters and disseminators of fake news on an imagined shooting and “massacre” of #EndSARS protesters at Lekki by soldiers. The spirits are after the masterminds of conjured and publicized offensive tales, wails and howls over imaginary bloodbath in the land, whilst the gods sighted none.

Apostles of fake news or junk journalism in Nigeria are the god’s greatest offenders. In 1996, a columnist with Washington Post, Robert J. Samuelson wrote a fascinating article on junk journalism titled “Junk Journalism 101.” In it, he aptly knocked junk journalism’s de-esteeming professional aura “… because it fails the basic test of journalistic integrity and competence: It does not strive for truthfulness, however impossible that ideal is to attain….”

Yet, in local parlance, others brand it as “Jakara” journalism, which entails the media’s repetition of fresh lies to cover old deceptions in a running story. The Cable News Network (CNN), the American based, international cable news station has consciously fallen into the pit of junk journalism while plying its trade in Nigeria.

Ideally, one would think, the CNN is peopled by hard-core professionals based on its international clout. Outwardly, one is tempted to believe there is every reason for the egghead media professionals in CNN to strive to heal the world with its reportage of global events, rather than render itself as powerful instruments of human destruction or weapons in the hands of subverts.

But such noble assumptions on CNN have proven to be misdirected, or wrongly super-imposed on the medium, particularly, in the latest instance of soldiers alleged shooting incident at the Lekki Toll Gate in Nigeria. CNN has disgracefully and dishonorably entered its name on the inglorious list of media houses around the world, which tell new lies to justify previous lies.

It’s recent investigative report in its edition of November 18, 2020, on the alleged Lekki “massacre” has regrettably ingrained CNN’s identity in the dishonorable “Hall of Fame,” as merchants of fake news and agents of global mercantile journalism. Therefore, when the FGN touted CNN for “irresponsible reporting” on the sloppy and jaundiced latest investigative report, the CNN retorted on its website through a spokesperson and insisted standing by the contents of its report.

The CNN’s spokesman e-mailed that “Our reporting was carefully and meticulously researched, and we stand by it.” It resists wisdom that the CNN’s report fraught with such shameful professional errors, vile propaganda, inconsistencies and inaccuracies could be described by authors as “carefully and meticulously researched.” Such corporate assertion in the face of grave official malfeasance is laughable in every sense. It was by every indication a mere posture of grandstanding to save face and embarrassment.

The managers of the CNN cannot dispute the embarrassingly obvious lacunas and influenced defects in the report. CNN claimed it had interviewed a dozen or multiple eyewitness to the Lekki incident. However, the latest report indicated that CNN spoke to only 12 persons in all; six of them were not eye witnesses, but either third parties who retold the story or government officials far detached from the scene of the incident; so, could not have qualified under any categorization as eyewitnesses.

In truth, CNN played out the disjointed accounts of a mere six eyewitnesses, and some, with very vague identities, which by every stretch of imagination is also not what semantically qualified it as a dozen eye witnesses. The antics by CNN is to create the impression that it did a thorough work to compel a tricked public believability in its report and very -similitude of truth.

And the tenor of the CNN report overly indicated that the news agency dabbled into the local partisanship in Nigeria. While it mentioned two names of the eyewitnesses, CNN decided to conceal the identity or full identities of the other four under the guise of their safety; but not because the eye witnesses demanded for anonymity. Does it mean, the CNN’s exposed full identities are not threatened by Government or the Government has penciled down names of those to threaten or overlook?

CNN stretched the malicious propaganda against Government, its targeted villain further by saying, “Several eyewitnesses have fled the country, while others are living in safe houses. Some told CNN they were offered money to recant their initial testimonies. CNN has seen some of the messages received, though it is unclear who is sending them.”

It is surprising that an international news medium condescended into petty local politics and sentiments in reporting a sensitive or controversial incident by clearly taking sides. These aspects of the report only blend with the vague imaginations of the CNN correspondents.

So, CNN employed sensitive clickbaits in the report carefully crafted to enliven public anger and possibly, re-energize the violently destructive protests by pro-#EndSARS campaigners. It is a message it cleverly passed through narrations like; “The videos capturing some of those 101 minutes tell a story of terror and chaos. They show graphic injuries and people bleeding on the ground.”

But none of the videos it released showed anything near the gores CNN has painted in the narrations. It is a deliberately false report, devoid of distinction between verified factual information and partisan commentaries of protagonists of the #EndSARS protesters.

And CNN’s self-contradictions and inconsistencies continued “In several of the videos, reviewed and verified by CNN, some of the protesters can be seen carrying bodies, the flashlights on their phones, the only thing illuminating the darkness as the sound of ambulance sirens wail in the background. It is not known whether these were dead or injured protesters.”

Ironically, the multiple eyewitnesses CNN claimed to have interviewed suddenly lost retentive memories to clearly intimate the medium on whether it was dead bodies or those who sustained gunshots wounds that were ferried away by the ambulances and to what location in the city.

And in another breathe, the report’s inconsistency says; Multiple eyewitnesses told CNN that ambulances were prevented from reaching the scene by the authorities.” The gist of ambulances ferrying some persons CNN could not identify through eyewitnesses whether it is dead or the injured; suddenly, morphed into the dry narration that ambulances were prevented from “reaching the scene by the authorities?”

Undeterred, CNN which was desperate to complete the assignment borrowed the discredited narrative of Amnesty International (AI) by proclaiming that “However, about 10 days into the protests, the demonstrations were hijacked by “thugs and sponsored hoodlums” who attacked protesters, causing deaths and injuries.” It sounded as if either AI or CNN registered the identities of the genuine #EndSARS protesters with Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Nigeria and therefore, could detect its infiltration with hoodlums and miscreants.

For the promoters of fictitious tales of “massacre” at Lekki Tool Gate, with CNN report as the worthiest evidence, Bala Ibrahim, a public affairs commentator has provided interesting analytical insights, where he pooh-poohed CNN’s so-called investigative documentary; “Using some unproven and “miraculous” methodology, Nima (Elbagir) said they (protesters) were able to see shots, long before the bullets were fired. She said, “we could see shots, and at exactly 6.43pm, we started hearing gun fire”. It’s either Nima is in concert with those firing the shots, or there is something sinister she is not sharing out.”

It added; “Nima or the CNN relied on the accuracy of their camera to get the time, but they couldn’t avail the public with reliable pictures of the multiple casualties from those bizarre bullets. Without giving any evidence of geolocation, showing the tracking or the movements of the bullets with respect to the exact location of the protesters, Nima disputed the position of the military, that said they only fired blank bullets into the air to disperse the crowd. Nima simply flashed the pictures of some fireworks, as proof of direct shooting at the crowd by the military, relying, ridiculously on the live streaming of “DJ Switch”, a Nigerian celebrity, activist and co-sponsor of the protest.”

Like the title of Nigeria’s prolific novelist, Chinua Achebe’s essay, “The Trouble With Nigeria, ” the real trouble with most Nigerians today is the gullibility and penchant of accepting the least subs-standard foreign things as perfect. It should trouble every Nigerian that CNN should package this sort of garbage in a report and still adamantly classify it as meticulous and professional.

But a foundation had been laid by the CNN in its October 23, 2020 report on same Lekki shootings. In the report, CNN claimed soldiers shot and killed 38 protestors at Lekki. But in its return trip, it can’t even justify death of three persons in the report. Yes, initially, they sold contaminated rice to Nigerians, but on one complained; rather, some Nigerians rapaciously ate it because of the passion for everything foreign. Today, CNN is out in a mercantile manner to force on Nigeria another narrative even when the eyes cannot sight something different from the subsisting reality.

But unfortunately, the dance of the spirits which torments those that have wronged the gods is tormenting CNN because of its past roles in nations where it used fake report to destabilize countries. In Iraq, Libya, and scores of other countries in Africa have felt the fangs of CNN. Africa appears to be its most fertile ground and CNN is desperate to add Nigeria on the list. Quite obviously, the blood of the innocent is chasing CNN. It is because CNN has lost its professionalism and credibility by enlisting into the league of Jakara journalism.

Collins wrote this piece from Yale College, USA.

By Nkechi Odoma 

When General Tukur Yusufu Buratai was appointed as the 20th Chief of Army Staff by the President and Commander in Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on July 13th, 2015, the choice was hailed by all and sundry.

This was because, in the history of the Nigerian Armed Forces, Buratai remains one of the most decorated officers ever to be elevated to that enviable position. This could be gleaned from the fact that the Chief of Army Staff had equipped himself well in anticipation of this onerous task.

He belongs to an exclusive class of officers to have traversed virtually all the nooks and crannies of the Army formations before becoming the overall head of the Force. This no doubt placed him in better stead to putting up strategies aimed at revamping the Army. 

Before his appointment, Nigeria had been engulfed in a crisis arising from violence orchestrated by militancy, terrorism and banditry. Nigeria was placed on the world ladder as one of the most unsafe countries to live. For instance, entire South-South Nigeria was in the pocket of the militants. Ditto to the North East which had been commandeered by the Boko Haram terrorist group. Also, the Army was highly demoralised as they were battling the insurgents with less sophisticated weapons. 

It is important to note that in 2014 alone, 6,600 people were reportedly killed. In January of the succeeding year (2015), the BBC documented that no fewer than 15,000 Nigerians were annihilated by this murderous sect. 

The ferocious activities of this monstrous group led to the displacement of about 2.3 million natives while about 250, 000 others were coerced to fled the country in search of safety. Also, was the infamous case of the Chibok girls that were kidnapped from their school. 

This was the situation that the country found itself before the emergence of Muhammadu Buhari as the President. 

It was in an attempt to eradicate this menace that a worried and concerned President Buhari after comprehensive scrutiny of officers of the Nigerian Army zeroed his search on the Biu born General as the only man capable of exterminating the quagmire with dispatch.

According to military sources, going by the visible records of all the Army Generals in the country, General Buratai was considered the most suitable. His training, experience and dexterity were heralded as most suitable for the job. And that was why his appointment was perceived not only in the military circles but in the public domain as putting a round peg in a round hole.

Like the phraseology, “in whom much is given, much is expected”, the General was instantaneously expected to turn the tide. But to do so, much needed to be done as war victory could only be achieved via the instrumentality of strategic planning and execution.

To prosecute the war effectively, Buratai who prosecute military strategies with the scientific application, first of all, embarked on confidence-building anchored on morale-boosting of his officers and men as soldiers, before they were said to be highly disillusioned, disorganized and disoriented.

To restore the prestige, pride and dignity of the Army to its previous status, General Brutai proceeded and dwelled in the battlefield with the soldiers fighting alongside with them. Unlike in the past where military chiefs remain stagnant in their offices in the Army headquarters to dish out orders without experiencing the situation, General Buratai was physically in the war zone. This no doubt endeared him to the generality of the soldiers who in their minds said, “if the Chef of Army Staff could be in the field with us fighting, then we must put in our best and prove to him that we are capable”.

By so doing, the general had either deliberately or inadvertently inculcated into the soldiers the noble spirits of patriotism and nationalism.

The strategy paid off as before sunset, most of the communities in the hands of the insurgents were liberated. Bama, Goza, Baga, Gamboru-Ngala, Kala-Balge, Dikwa, Kanamma, Geidam, Chibok, Kwajaffa, Mubi, Madagali, Marte, Gombi, Michigan and others that were hitherto in the hands of Boko Haram were liberated. 

For the first time in the history of Boko Haram, they were roundly defeated and decapitated. So many of them ran to take refuge in the Lake Chad region while others fled towards the Cameron mountain when Buratai led the onslaught. But the fearless General who is solidly grounded in the arts of war turned the heat on them by chasing them to Lake and the mountains. He boiled the Lake and melted the mountains against the insurgents. Consequently, the reprieve came to Nigeria.

Normalcy was restored as places uninhabitable before the appointment of Buratai became inhabitable.

Since coming on board as Chief Of Army Staff, General Buratai has done so much by liberating the previously ravaged five states of Adamawa, Yobe, Bauchi, Taraba and Gombe as well as other places across Nigeria from the claws of Boko Haram terrorists.  

With the feat achieved by the General just a few months after his assumption of office as the Chief of Army Staff, Buratai shifted his attention to the Niger Delta with the hope of extricating the region from the grips of militancy.

The criminal activities of the various groups of militants in the Niger Delta no doubt put the Nigerian economy in jeopardy. Oil which is the major pillar of the Nigerian economy was being depredated daily therefore creating a deliberate regime of an economic adversary for the country.

After, a careful appraisal of the unfortunate situation, Buratai who is variously and fondly called the ‘Soldier’s Soldier’, the ‘Fearless General’ by his admirers, took the battle to liberate the region to the creeks of the Niger Delta. There he confronted the militants and extinguished them in no time. The few remnants took to their heels and fled to other countries when the battle became too hot for them to handle.

With the decimation of militants in the creeks, People hardly hear about these criminal elements in the country today.

Even though it is believed that a Prophet has no honour in his town, the laudable achievements of General Buratai had made nonsense of that cliche as some reputable international and national organizations have all bestowed on him several garlands. 

Some of these wreaths were: Forces Service Star (FSS), Meritorious Service Star (MSS), Distinguished Service Star (DSS), Grand Service Star (GSS), Pass Staff Course Dagger (PSC(+)), Field Command Medal ( FCM), Training Support Medal (TSM), United Nations Medal for Angola, Verification Medal, etc.

Despite the above, the General no doubt deserves more appreciation from Nigerians as his numerous sacrifices for the country can not be quantified. This is because, under the leadership of  Buratai, the Nigerian Army has recorded incredible feats in the war against terror, banditry and militancy.

Odoma wrote from Abuja.

By Kareem Goulding

The American-based, global cable network, CNN has suddenly found itself in the jungle of Nigeria’s muddy politics. It can hardly be admitted that ordinarily, CNN would have been interested in covering the affairs of Nigeria with such passion. CNN only enjoys advertisement funds by reaping from the fortunes of some of Nigeria’s multi-national companies.

Ironically, CNN went to great extents to cover the Lekki Toll Gate shootings under the banner of investigations. What is very disgusting is the tenor of the CNN’s report on the Lekki Toll Gate shootings.

The medium claimed state authorities are shielding the culpability of soldiers and the police in the Lekki shootings and the killing of unarmed protesters. Yet, CNN was absent-minded and stabbed itself by claiming, it found evidence of bullet casings at the scene of the protesters clash with security agents.

So, the state authority which has positioned itself to “cover up” the Lekki killings, would still be foolish enough not to clean-up any trace of evidence, nearly a month later? Some organizations are peopled by disingenuous liars.

But firstly,CNN knew, the Lagos State Government has set up a Judicial Panel of Inquiry to probe the Lekki Toll shootings, which has commenced public sittings to establish the truth of the incident. But CNN rudely and disrespectfully, damned it. It did not concern itself with reporting the proceedings of the probe panel.

Rather, it initiated a fresh media investigation into the Lekki incident, with the least consideration of its pre-judicial implications on the probe panel. As if this betrayal was not enough slap on the faces of Nigerians, CNN further went ahead to fabricate and twist the reports, contradicting itself in multiple instances.

What is more astounding is CNN’s diabolical and satanic imputation of the word “massacre,” into the criminally contrived #EndSARS protests? In CNN’s embarrassingly unprofessional documentary of the #EndSARS protests, it showed dim and blurred video footages it collected from the same mouthy accusers of soldiers on the Lekki incident and fronts of divisive forces in Nigeria. The videos jerked and paused intermittently, an overt indication of mischievous doctoring of the contents to achieve a defined objective.

The CNN accomplished its mission in Nigeria by imposing its judgment on the probe panel members like supreme deities on their subjects. It also attempted to force its superior verdict down the throat of the Federal Government of Nigeria and the world.

The CNN narrator, Nima Elbagir disclosed on the #EndSARS protesters, “But on October 20, these protests turned deadly, as the Army and Police moved in on unarmed civilians. The Nigerian Army has called allegations that it fired into the crowd, “fake news” and told a judicial panel of inquiry that it did not shoot at any civilian; but a new CNN investigation can reveal this is not true.”

The CNN’s audaciously predetermined verdict from their claimed “investigation” rather portrayed it as a CIA or FBI agent or a court of law. And it is certainly, nowhere near journalistic engagement. It is the greatest defect of the documentary.

This is further compounded by opening cue of the videos in which chorusing voices were followed by “sounds of gunshots and the chants of #EndSARS, #EndSARS;” and suddenly, background voices energized it by shouting, “they’ve killed him, they’ve killed him.”

The CNN narration disappointingly and unprofessionally boomed another voice of judgmental condemnation by consciously repeating a rehearsed script; “the Nigerian government denies this happened, a peaceful protest turned deadly.” Thereafter, nothing in the videos presented a fresh evidence of CNN’s investigation outside the recycled, thrashed and discredited video footages to contradict the Government.

It is sad that CNN would condescend into Nigeria’s messy potpourri of politics in reportage. But it has been CNN’s trademark these decades. Many still reminisce how CNN circulated untruthful reports about Libya and Iraq. It contributed tremendously in dethroning their leaders, as the reports plunged the two countries into years of horrific wars.

The Cable network adopted the same approach in Nigeria to precipitate crises, endanger the corporate existence of the country to give the Nigerian Army and the President Buhari administration a bad name. The report is nothing more than CNN’s usual propagandistic stunts, poorly crafted, but has potently destroyed many other countries receptive to it.

Stephanie Busari is the lead correspondent in that report. Her preference for the PDP Presidential candidate in the 2019 elections is not hidden, looking at the many interviews she was granted by him prior to the general elections. Her hatred for the current administration is obvious too. And the jubilations in the aftermath of the distorted and discredited CNN’s report on Lekki resonates more loudly in this camp because they believe the digital lies of the cable network.

If not, why will Busari be relying on amateur video footages to concoct her report? Unfortunately, a few Nigerians tend to accept and swallow anything sold to them especially, by the Western media without deciphering the intended motive.

From the CNN report, there is no new evidence or videos showing that the Nigerian Army truly “massacred” unarmed Nigerians. All that Stephanie Busari and her colleagues have done is to spin the collection of videos to suit their designed narrative. The truth still remains that the Lekki shootings as reported by CNN is filled with the same counter claims that have been proven to be starved of facts and truths. Its balderdash for CNN to claim the Army shot protesters at close range for seven hours yet, come back 29 days later to give only two names of casualties, after admitting 38 killed in its earlier reports.

Imagine shooting for several hours, live rounds of ammunition at protesters who were over 2000; no one is talking about hundreds of casualties? Just imagine, a group of soldiers opening fire on thousands of people lined up in front of them and no one found a trace of littered corpses and a river of blood at the Lekki toll gate. There is even no record of a stampede from the videos circulated by CNN to indicate a mob frightened by state forces. Nigerian soldiers must be the worse shooters in the world and thanks to CNN for showing Nigerians how “bad” their soldiers can shoot.

DJ Switch, the #EndSARS “heroine” had insisted that she and the other protesters took so many dead bodies and laid them before their shooters at the toll gate. But in the said CNN report, there is nowhere that she is heroically shown packing the claimed 7-15 dead bodies to the feet of soldiers. The CNN gave no proof and the videos did not show any direct shooting that captured the protesters falling in their numbers.

Why is CNN showing the world the same tissue of lies that DJ Switch recorded? Neither the people alleged to have been massacred at Lekki toll gate appeared in the videos, nor the massive wounded individuals that were allegedly displayed on DJ Switch’s live Instagram video. Maybe, because the CNN knows a rationally informed audience would ask how high caliber bullets they claimed were shot directly at the protesters, inflicted no injuries. Indeed, there was a massacre without dead bodies? This CNN report is the best Nollywood movie script in 2020.

An as a reputable media organization as the CNN claims to be; did their investigative team really conducted an independent investigation or they are satisfied with the video clips the unpatriotic DJ Switch, the fronts for divisive forces in Nigeria shared? The same CNN which identified only two deaths in its mischievous report of November 18, 2020, had on October 23, 2020 claimed the Army killed 38 people at Lekki.

How did the number of casualties drop suddenly to only two? Who then is deceiving who here? Why some Nigerians believe anything wester media churns out? Indeed, the CNN must have taken Nigerians as dummies to even think that the people will accept this without questions.

Let CNN desist from using their popularity to turn Nigeria into another Iraq or Libya. And for those unpatriotic Nigerians celebrating the handiwork of the enemy, they must have a rethink because war is not good for any country and its citizens. Again, those working behind the scenes to turn Nigeria into a crisis zone will be caught by nemesis soon.

The commercialized CNN report actually did not show anything new to Nigerians or the world. All they have shown is what had previously surfaced on the internet and it has been in public domain overtime. President Trump was indeed right by labelling CNN as purveyors of fake news, as it is much clearer to everyone now.

Goulding wrote this piece from the United Kingdom.