2007 CBA Regional Conference - Kenya
Public Opinion Research as a base for Transparency
Cece M. Fadope, Africa Programme Officer, Article XIX
In the various international instruments emphasizing Freedom of Expression – African Charter on Human and People's Rights; International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; the European Convention, etc., there's often a qualification that “the right may be subject to formalities, restrictions, penalties as are prescribed by law and necessary in a democratic society.” It's important to underline the part about … necessary in a democratic society . Democracy is about the authority of the people. It is therefore relevant for the media to provide information that promotes democratic citizenship – to help the public understand its authority and how to use that in making their governments accountable for public policy.
The authority of the people is often the missing link in much of the public discourse in Africa . Public opinion research is an important tool that the African media has yet to exploit fully in its efforts to be a watchdog. Public opinion and sentiments should be the basis of news reporting and programming, offering a more explanatory journalism rather than the pontificating that tends to dominate the news media. Recently, there was a different kind of media campaign in Nigeria that was apparently driven by public opinion. Although the sitting President Olusegun Obasanjo had never actually said, nor admitted, that he would seek a third term of office, human rights defenders, scholars, political activists and the media, somehow coalesced around the idea that they would uphold the constitutional provision of only two terms for a President. A national dialogue ensued (and it's still on-going) that has been a revelation about public opinion and transparency of political process in Nigeria .
The campaign was long in coming; it started in early 2005 when stories began to appear in both the broadcast and print media that the President intends to seek a third term of office. And slowly but surely, it gained momentum to the point where one might argue that it was over the top even. You'd see a speaker at a conference or meeting on say -- health policy reform, veer off into a discussion of the President's aspiration for a third term. It was on everyone's lips. More important, people could explain their opinion – offer their own specific reasons why they agreed or disagreed with the idea of a third term for the President. It was obvious that they had listened, heard and adapted many of the ideas they've heard in the media as their own. On Sundays, Nigerian television and radio offer an interesting fare of religious broadcasts. These televangelists too chimed to their flock on why the constitutional provision of two terms for the presidents must be preserved. And by the chorus of Amens, it seemed people actually got it.
It was marvellous to witness the trend that could only be described as a grassroots campaign against any real or imagined extension of President Obasanjo's term of office. No amount of denying by his men and women would suffice. Even when the Senate voted down a proposed constitutional change, it didn't close the door on the alleged intention of the President, the anti-third term dialogue persisted. Soon the international media picked up the story. The President was interviewed on CNN and his handlers were all over the place explaining themselves and the President. For a change, a local story led the news agenda on Africa . Sure enough, whatever intentions the President had or hadn't, of a third term aspiration, were shaken down. And now, two months to the elections, President Olusegun Obasanjo is not a candidate for a third term of office.
How often do African Presidents feel they must explain themselves? Public opinion made a difference. Let's imagine that other public interest issues receive a similar level of debate grounded in the authority of the people. It could force many more secret vaults open and let the sun shine into the halls of policy decision-making in African countries. But quite often the media feels it has to go it alone. News producers rarely consult their audience before programs are produced. And after the news is published and aired, they receive little or no feedback to judge the impact of their product and see whether it resonated with their listeners, readers and viewers.
It is not uncommon for governments to give lip service to the constitutional provision for freedom of expression and access to information. It is up to the media to unpack FOE and use the tools at their disposal -- in this case, public opinion research – as the basis for dialogue and conversation in ways that pressure governments to respect the authority of the people. There's an imperative to promote wide consultation with African people and expound on their views about the continent's social development direction. We need to marry the media's social responsibility with democratic citizenship, -- civic responsibility, a wider civil society if you will, to create pressure for accountability and transparency in Africa . Let's put the public in public broadcasting.