NIGERIANS AND PROPAGANDA: THE RECENT FLOW. By Fadare Oluwaseun Emmanuel. Expressly, Richard Alan Nelson in his words referred to propaganda as a systematic form of purposeful persuasion that attempts to influence the emotions, attitudes, opinions and actions of specified target audiences for ideological, political or commercial purposes through the controlled transmission of one-sided messages (which may or may not be factual) via mass and direct media channels. Zbynek Zeman, an historian, laconically described propaganda as either white, grey or black. White propaganda openly discloses its source. Grey propaganda is ambiguous or non-disclosed. Black propaganda purports to be published by the enemy or someone besides its actual origins. Generally, propaganda is a form of communication aimed towards influencing the attitude of a population towards some position. It is referred to as information, ideas, or rumour deliberately spread widely to help a person, group, movement or institution. In my own view, propaganda connotes all semblance of half-truth, gobbledygook, untrue information, insincerity, inconsistency, hypocritical remark, uncouth utterance and unjustifiable comment, concerted, formulated, promulgated and propagated by those in the power realm or power seekers to defraud and wheedle, meander and manipulate, entice and cajole, convince and confuse the public - hence, the winning of souls and bodies to themselves. While commissioning, promulgating and propagating propaganda, people are always logical in choosing which technique to use. These techniques includes: One, ad hominem: attacking opponents rather than opponents’ ideas or principles. Two, ad nauseam: repeating ideas relentlessly so that the audience becomes inured to them. Three, the use of authority figures such as celebrities to support ideas. Name calling, black and white fallacy, dictat, euphoria, influencing the media. In addition, Herman Goering identified some techniques employed while propagating propaganda; the techniques which includes: bandwagon, loaded words, testimonials, stereotyping, plain folks, glittering generality, deification, artificial dichotomy, stalling or ignoring questions, cause and effect mismatch, distortion of data, misuse of statistics et al. Suprisingly, the use of propaganda in politics and politricks of Nigeria has become rampacious; indeedy, none of these techniques has not been employed. The politicians are always with political gimmicks, their supporters are being logically derailed and colonized mentally and ideologically. Alas, the youths that ought to be the agents of enlightenment and freedom are already bought. Their future and lives had been bought in the market of total absurdness, their arguements on who a saint is, are frivolities based, greed had possessed the original position of creed in their heart. The mass media are in chains; no freedom! The activists are deaf and dump. The place of association in politics is wiped off. The influence of religion has been bought; the religion leaders no longer utter truths. It is pitiable that in Nigeria as a whole, we have political parties with no ideology. Everyone joins the crowd, everyone goes where money is shared, everyone goes with personal interests instead of that of the people. I make bold to avow it is a shame on Nigeria! It is crystal clear that the use of propaganda in Nigeria is fast becoming inhuman and egregious, impolitical and insipid, impolite and unwarranted. The recent display of infancy by the political gladiators is the latest show of shame in the world. The effect of the approaches and languages (including tantrums, jibes and vulgar words) they employs to selling their candidates, is the same as the satisfaction derived from a salacious masochism on the dignity and integrity of the teeming ordinary Nigerians - which is without any circumambage, an absolute pefidy to their highly esteemable personalities. Country people, objectively, the flowing propaganda are borne out of hypocrisy. The venerated Fasola of APC who raised issues of Age over Lagos state guber election and endorses Buhari for change, the famous Fayose of PDP who wasnt good at defending his own certificate during the Ekiti guber election, now raising eyebrow on Buharis certificate scandal in favour of Jonanthans continuity, the Mimiko of Ondo, the Amechi of Rivers, and others are hypocrites. A clearly bland and disgusting caricature of the scenarios is as seeing pot calling kettle black. Affirmatively, the atrocities of General Buhari are still fresh in the hearts of those that witnessed his military rulership, just as that of President Jonanthan is, deep down our hearts. Advisingly, the presidential election is nearer, Nigerians should face facts and figures and stop misconstruing, misleading and confusing Nigerians. Fadare Oluwaseun Emmanuel is a student of Political Science Department, Ekiti State University.
Posted on: Wed, 21 Jan 2015 05:37:39 +0000
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