The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has condemned what he described as the double standards and partisan approach of sections of the media in reporting political violence, following the incident involving the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Peter Obi, in Benue State.
Obi was reportedly prevented by angry protesters from proceeding to the venue of his planned visit in the state, an incident that has generated controversy and political accusations.
Reacting to the development, Keyamo said the incident should be condemned irrespective of who was responsible for the protest, stressing that political disagreements should not be allowed to degenerate into the obstruction or intimidation of candidates.
According to him, whether the incident was caused by internal disagreements within the NDC, as suggested by the Benue State Government, or allegedly sponsored by the All Progressives Congress (APC) or another political party, such actions have no place in a democratic society.
“Whether the protest was as a result of internal squabbles within the NDC or sponsored by the APC or any other rival party, this should not be part of our democracy,” Keyamo said.
He noted that some people had accused Obi of attempting to generate political sympathy through his planned visit to Yelwata, where killings occurred more than a year ago. However, he maintained that such arguments could not justify preventing any political leader from moving freely.
“Some have also accused Obi of attempting to whip up fresh emotions by attempting to visit Yelwata where the unfortunate killings happened more than a year ago just for political reasons,” he said.
“That is still not acceptable; everyone should be allowed to move about freely and play their politics without such crude interference.”
However, Keyamo used the incident to launch a strong criticism of what he described as partisan and inconsistent reporting by sections of the media.
He argued that similar incidents involving candidates of the APC are often portrayed differently, with hostile crowds being presented as evidence of public rejection rather than political violence.
According to him, when an APC candidate is confronted or attacked by a crowd, some media organisations allegedly describe the incident as a rejection by Nigerians. But when opposition figures are involved, the same type of incident is reportedly framed as an attack by “sponsored thugs” or “hoodlums.”
“Many a time when an angry crowd confronts or molests an APC candidate at any level, the partisan Press shamelessly dubs or spins it as ‘rejection’ by ‘Nigerians’,” Keyamo said.
“When it concerns the opposition, then it is ‘attack’ by ‘sponsored thugs’ or ‘hoodlums’. Just check most headlines today.”
The minister said the inconsistency in reporting political incidents was damaging to democracy and called on journalists and media organisations to uphold fairness and professional standards regardless of the political party involved.
“This is what is unacceptable,” he said, accusing some political leaders and media platforms of encouraging narratives that normalise attacks against candidates belonging to particular parties.
Keyamo further claimed that some opposition leaders had openly boasted that APC candidates could not campaign in certain parts of the country without being attacked.
“What is good for the goose is also good for the gander,” he said. “The Press must extricate itself from such partisanship and be fair to all.”
He insisted that political anger and dissatisfaction should be expressed through democratic means rather than violence or intimidation.
According to Keyamo, Nigerians who are dissatisfied with any candidate or political party should reserve their judgement for the ballot box.
“Whoever is angry at any candidate of any political party should display the anger with the ballot paper on voting day by a simple thumbprint, not by violent acts during campaigns,” he said.