Media
THE Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has called for far-reaching constitutional and electoral reforms, including a 50 per cent vote threshold for presidential elections.
The Guild also called for electoral disputes to be resolved within appropriate timelines, preferably before the inauguration of winners.
The resolutions were contained in the communiqué issued at the 22nd All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC 2026), held from Sept. 24 to Sept. 26 in Enugu.
The conference, held under the theme, “The Ballot, the Media and the Task of Keeping Democracy Alive,” also called for a review of the process of appointing the Chairman and National and State Commissioners of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The editors recommended an appropriate constitutional threshold for presidential elections, with a run-off where the candidate with the highest number of votes failed to secure up to 50 per cent of votes cast.
They also called for a review of limitations placed on voters seeking to challenge electoral results and advocated a constitutional framework that would permit independent candidacy.
The conference examined challenges confronting Nigeria’s electoral democracy, including artificial intelligence, misinformation, disinformation, electoral insecurity and declining public confidence ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The Guild said the value of the ballot depended on credible information, public confidence in the electoral process and assurance that votes would be properly counted and respected.
It identified voter apathy as a product of poor governance, electoral violence and intimidation, administrative shortcomings and declining public confidence.
The editors also expressed concern over perceptions that judicial interventions in some electoral disputes could displace outcomes recorded at the ballot box.
They stressed the need to respect judicial independence while advocating electoral adjudication that was timely, transparent, predictable and impartial.
The Guild called for genuine electoral irregularities to be appropriately addressed and electoral disputes resolved within appropriate timelines.
On emerging technologies, the conference identified generative artificial intelligence, deep fakes, voice cloning and automated networks as major threats to electoral information.
It warned that synthetic content could be used to circulate fabricated election results, cloned voices of public officials, forged documents, manipulated result sheets and fake reports attributed to established media organisations.
The editors urged newsrooms to institutionalise fact-checking and verification systems and integrate digital verification, deep-fake detection and forensic tools into their editorial workflows.
The Guild also urged media organisations to adopt the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage (Revised 2022) and train journalists and editorial staff on its provisions ahead of the 2027 elections.
It reaffirmed the responsibility of the media to provide accurate, verified and independent information and to scrutinise governments, political parties and other centres of power.
The editors, however, cautioned that media scrutiny should not suppress legitimate achievements, calling for evidence-based journalism that neither exaggerated failures nor suppressed verified achievements.
They said editorial neutrality meant impartiality among legitimate political contenders and did not require journalists to remain silent in the face of verified wrongdoing.
The conference urged governments at all levels to remain transparent and accountable and cooperate with the media in the legitimate exercise of its watchdog role.
It also called for equitable access to media space for government and opposition voices while respecting editorial independence.
On election security, the Guild said journalists must be protected from threats, attacks and obstruction while covering elections.
It urged security agencies and political actors to protect journalists and enable them to perform their constitutional and professional responsibilities without intimidation.
The NGE further urged INEC to sustain nationwide readiness assessments, strengthen technical partnerships on cybersecurity and electoral technology, ensure the technical integrity of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and protect the commission’s institutional independence.
It said all technology deployed in elections must remain subject to human oversight, transparency, accountability and legal verification.
On terrorism reporting, the editors endorsed the principle, “Inform, Don’t Amplify,” urging newsrooms to clearly identify terrorist claims as claims until independently verified.
They also advised media organisations to avoid reproducing propaganda, recruitment messages, slogans or graphic material except where there was compelling editorial justification.
The Guild reaffirmed that the media should remain “pro-Nigeria, pro-Ballot and pro-People”, rather than align with any political party.
It said the credibility of Nigeria’s democracy ultimately depended on an electoral process where citizens could make informed choices, vote freely and have confidence that their votes would be accurately counted and respected.
The conference was chaired by the Obi of Onitsha, His Royal Majesty Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, while the Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, His Eminence John Cardinal Onaiyekan, delivered the keynote address.
Vice-President Kashim Shettima participated virtually as Special Guest of Honour, while Enugu State Governor, Dr Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, was the Chief Host.
More than 500 editors, publishers and senior media professionals, as well as political, traditional, religious, academic, regulatory and development-sector leaders, attended the conference.
Papers were presented by former Nigerian Bar Association President, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN; Prof. Auwalu H. Yadudu of Bayero University, Kano; former Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of The Guardian Newspapers, Mr Martin Oloja; Prof. Chinyere Stella Okunna of Paul University, Awka; Prof. Farooq A. Kperogi of Kennesaw State University, Georgia, USA; and Dr Richard Okoye, Founder/Chief Medical Director of Save a Life Hospital.
The Guild thanked the Government and people of Enugu State for their hospitality and support, as well as conference speakers, presenters, panellists, sponsors and development partners for their contributions.
M.P
Tags: Nigerian editors Seek constitutional reforms