Revolution Now’ May Be Misinterpreted- CCC
…Condemns Demonization of Fulanis

The Centre for Crisis Communication (CCC) has called on Conveners and organizers of ‘Revolution Now’ to be cautious in the use of hyperbolic and sensational words as they may be interpreted otherwise thereby heightening the already tense situation in the country.

In a statement signed by the Executive Secretary of the Centre, Air Commodore Yusuf Anas(Rtd) in Abuja, the centre said the tension and restiveness which are generated by the deteriorating conflict trends are further aggravated by the prevalent hate speeches and resentful communication in the polity.

“This is a dangerous development which if not well managed and timely too, could spark off national crisis with far reaching consequences”, the statement said.

It further said while it will not question the right to peaceful protest by individuals or groups, the process must be done in tandem with constitutional provisions.

“Sensational and hyperbolic words such as ‘Revolution Now’ if loosely used, will no doubt be misinterpreted thereby heightening tensions and heating up the polity. There is the need on the part of the government and the governed to always exercise restraint in conflict or crisis situation”, it said.

“Therefore, we do not call for revolution in the current democratic setting in Nigeria. We call on all well-meaning individuals, groups, state and non-state actors to see this unwarranted and surreptitious call as a serious threat to our nascent democracy”.

The CCC Boss also said Centre for Crisis Communication’s conflict trends analysis for the first half of 2019 reveals an upswing in internal security challenges in several parts of Nigeria. Contemporary security challenges that currently assail the country include terrorism, armed banditry, kidnapping, herders/farmers clash, ethno-religious conflict, separatist agitation, rape, cattle rustling, human trafficking, drug addiction, ritual killing and cyber-crime/internet fraud (Yahoo Yahoo).

Meanwhile the Centre has condemned in its entirety the growing toxic narrative that is purveyed in the country especially in the social media which tends to demonize the Fulanis, pitching them against others.

The centre noted that the orchestrated effort to criminalize the entire Fulani ethnic group was unacceptable, and therefore rejects the unfortunate narrative that collectively demonizes them as inherently evil and therefore guilty of whatever crime is attributed to them, adding that there are criminals in every ethnic group and all crimes should be dealt with accordingly.

The centre also notes with great concern that a section of the media has succeeded in giving every criminal and potential ones the use of Fulani alibi as a cover, stressing that ethnic profiling is dangerous to the society as the endpoint is ethnic cleansing.

The centre calls on Government not sit aside and watch while toxic media flourish in our airwaves, adding that Nigerians, particularly media practitioners and operators of various social media handles need to be reminded of the dangers of unidirectional stories.

By PRNigeria

FULL TEXT BELOW

CENTRE FOR CRISIS COMMUNICTATION
PRESS RELEASE ON THE STATE OF THE NATION:
On Call for ‘Revolution’ and Ethnic Profiling

The Centre for Crisis Communication is deeply concerned about the rising tension and restiveness in the country. The tension and restiveness which are generated by the deteriorating conflict trends are further aggravated by the prevalent hate speeches and resentful communication in the polity. This is a dangerous development which if not well managed and timely too, could spark off national crisis with far reaching consequences.

While the Centre is not questioning the right to peaceful protest by individuals or groups, we wish to state that it has to be done in tandem with constitutional provisions. Sensational and hyperbolic words such as ‘Revolution Now’ if loosely used, will no doubt be misinterpreted thereby heightening tensions and heating up the polity. There is the need on the part of the government and the governed to always exercise restraint in conflict or crisis situation. Therefore, we do not call for revolution in the current democratic setting in Nigeria. We call on all well-meaning individuals, groups, state and non-state actors to see this unwarranted and surreptitious call as a serious threat to our nascent democracy.

The Centre for Crisis Communication’s conflict trends analysis for the first half of 2019 reveals an upswing in internal security challenges in several parts of Nigeria. Contemporary security challenges that currently assail the country include terrorism, armed banditry, kidnapping, herders/farmers clash, ethno-religious conflict, separatist agitation, rape, cattle rustling, human trafficking, drug addiction, ritual killing and cyber-crime/internet fraud (Yahoo Yahoo). It is noteworthy that some of the current security challenges became aggravated after the 2019 general caution.

Understandably, these challenges are obviously a threat to our national security and of a major concern for the government. We appreciate government’s efforts at containing them. However, aside from the above identified security, there are other negative behaviours that have tended to accentuate tension and polarize the polity which the Centre believes deserves greater attention.

Of particular concern to the Centre is the growing toxic narrative that is purveyed in the country especially in the social media which tends to demonize an ethnic group, pitching them against others. A typical example is the orchestrated effort to criminalize the entire Fulani ethnic group for this crime of a few among them. The Centre repudiates the unfortunate narrative that collectively demonizes Fulanis as inherently evil and therefore guilty of whatever crime is attributed to them. We believe that there are criminals in every ethnic group and all crimes should be dealt with accordingly.

We also note that a section of the media has succeeded in giving every criminal and potential ones the use of Fulani alibi as a cover. Ethnic profiling is a danger to the society as the endpoint is ethnic cleansing. Government should not sit aside and watch while toxic media flourish in our airwaves. Nigerians particularly media practitioners and operators of various social media handles need to be reminded of the dangers of unidirectional or a single story.

To this end, the Centre urges the media to embrace the principle of conflict sensitive communication which seeks to avoid negative impacts and maximize positive ones. Insensitive communication contains triggers that can contribute to outbreak or further escalation of conflict situation. Objective journalism and fair-minded operation of social media platforms encourage the reflection of all significant strands of opinion and not accepting the version of a story as presented by one side.

Air Commodore Yusuf Anas (Rtd)
Executive Secretary
August 2019