Why does the government of Nigeria constantly try to conceal some vital news and information from the general public especially if the news will paint a dent in the government? There’s no reason to justify acts like these and it calls for citizens to raise an alarm.
It is strongly in the public interest that the government always clear the air, in honesty, void of propaganda, and give reports on incidents, especially on terror attacks as it is important to inform the public of emerging developments and information is vital as it can be used to convey public safety messages and avert subsequent incidents. Citizens’ lives depend on it.
Everything in governance should not be all about propaganda and protecting the image of the government and its officials.
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What happened in Kano state last Tuesday is a pointer to how the government of Nigeria works harder than the devil in covering up news and keeping the citizens in the dark without knowledge of what is going on in their neighborhood. For the safety and interest of the public, some critical news like a bomb blast should never be covered up. The government always claims that if the populace gets to know about the gravity or the intensity of what is going on sometimes it will create tension or panic in the mind of the people and hit up the society and make it ungovernable. This defense is ridiculous and holds no water.
A bomb exploded in the Sabon gari area of Kano state last Tuesday, the kano state government through its commissioner of information rebutted the claim that it was never a bomb blast but rather it is a gas explosion from a welder’s workshop. The Kano state police command through the police commissioner also stated categorically during media interviews that it was never a bomb blast rather it was an explosion caused by the negligence of a welder. The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) also corroborated the claims of other government officials and denied that it was never a bomb blast.
The government media team tried as much as they could to cover up the news and reduce somewhat seem like a terrorist attack to a mere gas explosion from a welder’s workshop.
Thanks to Providence for the hard work of some independent media outlets and some journalists that carried out a background investigation and insisted that the government is not being honest with the incident and that it was actually a bomb blast and somewhat look like a terrorist attack that took place which calls for the state to beef up security in the area and stop living in denial. This set of persons who insisted with proves that it was a bomb attack that took place was bullied and attacked by many to shut them up and they were called “mongers of bad news” and “wishers of evil”.
As Gautama Budha will say; three things cannot be hidden for long; the sun, the moon, and the truth. The truth about what happened in the Sabon gari area of Kano state subsequently made it to the news in a gradual motion or a news leak. The security agencies and the government officials who all denied that there was never a bomb blast are now chewing back their lies.
We understand that the media plays a huge role in determining the atmosphere of the society and that’s why the government pays so much attention to it and try as much as possible to whittle down some ill news and release opposing propaganda in order not to create tension but some news should rather be allowed the gloat over the public space for the citizens to be properly informed and any attempt to cover it up will create more harm.
It’s high time that the government and their foot soldiers that are paid to spread propaganda and lies to cover up some critical information know that some critical information is necessary for the survival of the people and it can be useful in averting the mayhem or averting subsequent incidents.
News of planned terrorist attacks like these should never be covered up for the sake of protecting the image of the government or not to create panic in the mind of people. People need to know what is going on especially this season when Nigeria is struggling with security failure because their lives and survival depend on it.