THE ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY AND MASS MEDIA
IN SOCIAL MOBILISATION
FOR
NATIONAL INTEGRATION AND DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA:
ABSTRACT
This article engages issues of national integration and development through
the concept of social mobilisation and role the mass media and the civil society
can play in the process. The structure of the paper is the exposition of the
major concepts Viz: social mobilisation, civil society, mass media, national
integration and national development. It is proposed that the task of national
integration and national development will remain elusive except both the mass
media and the civil society realised the symbiosis functional nexus in their
activities and accordingly cooperate. The relevant attributes in their functions
are adequately explicated.
INTRODUCTION
Giving the pluralist nature of the Nigerian communities that make up the federation, and the volatile
socio-political, cultural and economic dynamics characterising the Nigerian state, the subject and
practice of national integration is obviously an imperatives requiring continuous engagement and reappraisal.
The seemingly unwieldy amalgamation of diverse cultures and people of Nigeria into an expectedly
unified whole call Nigeria as proved to be an enduring and energy sapping venture. Our leaders,
right from the beginning, have voiced out regret over the development. We are all familiar with
expression like ‘’the mistake of 1914’’, ‘’Nigeria, a mere geographical expression’’ etc.
The hope repose in self-governance to bring about a high sense of national integration and
development has been severally dashed due to bad leadership in governance. As a result, the
Nigerian federation have been in the grip of profound socio-economic and political crisis that are yet
to abate. The situation has thrown up an attitude of despondency towards a possible fraternity
among Nigerians that could lead to positive growth and achievement. At the conceptual level, the
Nigerian government remain resolute, in its commitment to foster national unity and integration.
Evidences of these can be found in the establishment of national youth service corps, the national
orientation agency, which is a transformation of several agencies in the past, the unity schools. e.t.c.
The success, efficiency and effectiveness of these agencies are still subject of intellectual and
scholarship engagement. It is clear, however that national integration is a sine qua- non, for national
development.
CONCEPTUAL CLARIFICATIONS
The structure of this discourse requires clarifications of the major concepts before we proceed on
the explication of the role the mass media and civil society can play in national integration and
development.
Social mobilisation.
From the perspective of the defunct MAMSER which has devolved into National Orientation Agency
(NOA); Social mobilisation, is conceived as process of pulling together, harnessing ,actualising and
utilising potential human resource for the purpose of development. In specific terms; ‘It is a process
whereby a particular social collection are made aware of the resources at their disposal and are also
motivated and energised to collectively utilise such resources for the improvement of their spiritual
and material conditions of living.’
The agency further gives comprehensive conception of the process, component and functions of the
idea of social mobilisation when it avers that
Social mobilisation must be seen in terms of involving the people in taking part
actively and freely in discussions and decisions affecting their general welfare. In
other words, social mobilisation and political education should aim at increasing
people’s level of awareness; coagulation of political and other issues so that they
can apply energies positively and participate actively in social and political live of the
country(MAMSA,1988)
Social mobilisation could be referred to as a process of democratic social interaction under a
condition of free and equal dialogue and participation in order to modify the behaviour of a large
number of people to demand satisfaction of their need through self reliance (Stanislaw, 1988)
He further underscores the nature and inherent challenges in the task of embarking on social
mobilisation by calling attention to the fact that ‘’social mobilisation is a multi faceted, dynamic
process involving the diffusion of information and sharing of experiences with various societal forces
in order to stimulate, educate and involve them in specific social goal.’’
NATIONAL INTEGRATION:
Integration according to oxford learner’s dictionary entails two dimensions. (1) to become or make
somebody become a member of a community rather than remaining in a separate group In other
words, race, ethnic, colour or religious differences should not be the basis of denying someone his
due right and privileges in accordance with nationally laid down rules and regulation.
The second idea is that of progress towards closer ties between or among economic, political or
social entities.
The above meaning of integration has been given vent to in Nigerian constitution. Chapter II, of the
constitution, which deals with fundamental objectives and directive principle of the state policy,
mandates government in Nigeria to work towards;
Establishing the necessary conditions for the promotions of national
integration
through the provision of adequate facilities for the
encouragement of free mobility of people, goods and services, including
ideas, and thought throughout the nation .(1999 constitution).
The underlined portion of the above quoted passage of the constitution has adequately
captured the scope and objectives of national integration.
The idea running through national integration is the genuine and concerted attempt at
building, maintaining and fostering unity of purpose, mutual relationship and a common identity
amongst people of different and diverse culture through the cultivation of a common outlook. A task
that the mass media and the civil society are better placed to facilitate.
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Development implies the idea of growth, progress, increased quality of life etc. it is a process of a
harnessing all available human and material recourses of a society for national growth in a way that
ensure equality, liberty and freedom (Uche,2000).Development has to be comprehensive, an
integral, value loaded cultural process, which encompasses the natural environment, social relation,
education, production, consumption and well being of the target populace (Uma,1994).
The process of social change resulting in an increase in the capacity of a social system to fulfil its own
perceived needs at progressively higher levels of material and cultural well-being (Tehranian 1994see
Okigbo&Eribo eds2004 ).
Similarly, Ramiro Beltran asserts that National Development is a directed and widely participatory
process of deep and accelerated socio-political change geared towards producing substantial change in
the economy, the technology, the ecology and the overall culture of a nation so that the moral and
material advancement of the majority of its population can be obtained within conditions of
generalized equality, dignity, justice and liberty.
National development is conceived as the gradual expansion of available facilities and resources both
quantitatively and qualitatively so as to bring to a fuller, better and greater state. It connotes progress
from an earlier to a later stage characterized with better resource allocation and utilization and greater
effectiveness.(see Adedeji citing Adesina in Saliu2006)
And more importantly, is the fact that national development requires the conducive environment of
openness, accountability, efficiency, and good governance to thrive. From this definitions emerge
certain notions: that national development is not just about individual or sector but the whole society.
National development is concerned about undesirable conditions about the rural dwellers, the urban
poor, the menace of social miscreants, elites deficiencies, corruption, deterioration in social
institutions (health education etc) . It is about instituting and sustaining democratic cultures among
sectors and classes of the society.
Furthermore, national development is multi-faceted involving different activities at different pace in
different levels and sectors of the society
PERSPECTIVES ON THE CONCEPT OF CIVIL SOCIETY.
Civil society, according to CLAUDIO SCHUFTAN, quoting(Roper Renshaw, 1994).is to be
understood as organizations without direct access to the established political power, and
who are working towards a shared vision of a more just and equitable society and
development process. Civil society is, therefore, a much broader, more complex and richer
concept than Non-Government Organisation (NGO ;). civil society is not controlled by
government, but accepts the role of the state; it aims at preparing communities for
participation in the political process exerting their right to co-governance. Tolerance towards
others and a sense of belonging -of having a common identity- are further characteristics of
this civil society. It is said that their main role is to mobilize people and to open political and
civic space in which they can operate at an advantage; their accountability is to their
constituency only.
Attempt to define civil society has been, however, faced with plurality of views and
perspectives due to the fact that different writers stress different aspects. Ayee 2005), sheds
further lights on the concepts of civil society. He articulates the following in respect of civil
society as ‘the formation of associational life of citizens characterised by common interest
and identities, civil and public purposes and collective and autonomous actions….it is the
layer of voluntary, popular, public and social action of non-state actors- that utilises social,
cultural, political and ethnic network and non-state activities in pursuance of objectives, which
are
usually
of
a
public
nature…..it
include
the
organisationsoftheprofessions,labour,youth,women,peasant,communal,social,cultura
l,neihgbourdhood,development, environmental and civil right groups that build identities
and platform in respect of claims, civil actions and solutions.
It is in similar vein, that civil societies are perceived as having broadened individual and
group influence, access to participation, pluralised power relations, and enabled the
emergence of a culture of engagement, protest, contestation, challenge and resistance
against improprieties and abuses of organisations and state.
In a succinct articulation of what, who and when a group does qualify for inclusion as civil
society, (Uyo 1996) says ‘civil society refers to the citizens of a state, the people, excluding
the military and the clergy.’ He then explained that ‘in a country under the military rule……
the civil society would comprise politicians who are out of power and the other citizens. In a
country under civilian rule, civil society would include the totality of groups out of power,
that is, the political elites and masses.
MASS MEDIA IN PERSPECTIVE
Mass Media has been conceived as the technological devices that are used to disseminate
messages to a large, heterogeneous and widely dispersed audience, simultaneously. To Head
and Sterling(see Laaro2004) ‘Mass Media are those means of communication that use
technology to reach large parts of the population almost simultaneously with the kinds of
news and entertainment that ordinary people find attractive and a price ordinary people can
afford to pay.
Media organizations distribute messages that affect and reflect the cultures of society and
provide information to a large heterogeneous audience making media part of society’s
institutional forces (.Littlejohn 2002:303).
To further illustrate the potency of the media as social institution, Littlejohn quoted Gerbner
as having made this observation that ‘The broad ‘public making’ significance of the mass
media of communication--the ability to create publics, define issues, provide common terms
of reference, and to allocate attention and power--has evoked a number of theoretical
contributions.’’
Let us conclude this section by this panoramic view of what the media do in society by a
leading light in field of mass communication and media studies;
Dennis McQuail presents his comment using metaphor:
Media are windows that enable us to see beyond our immediate surroundings,
interpreters that help us make sense of experience, platform or carrier that
convey information, interactive communication that includes audience
feedback, signpost that provides us with instruction and direction, filters that
screen out parts of experience and focus on others, mirrors that reflect
ourselves back to us, and barriers that block the truth.
FACTORS AGAINST NATIONAL INTEGRATION
This section of the paper takes an inventory of the factors that are posing challenges against
effective practices of national integration in the Nigerian federation.
Citizenship Question: despite less than thirty months to the 50th year’s anniversary of attaining
independence and an express constitutional guarantee, the question of who is a citizen of a state or
local government is yet to be settled. The Nigerian constitution specifies who is a citizen of of
Nigeria but silent on who is a citizen of a state or local government area. Ordinarily, any Nigerian
should be able to live and enjoy full citizenship right in any part of Nigeria. In practice, however,
attaining citizenship status does not translate to political equality in all part of the country. The
citizenship/indigene dichotomy is at the root of the recent crises in Jos that resulted in killings along
ethnic and religious lines. Such social realities pose serious impediment to the message of national
integration.
Minority issue: because of the influence of dominant groups (be it ethnic or religious group)
minorities in either case are sources of discontent that tend toward centrifugal rather than tolerance
and cooperation .Minority agitations precedes attainment of independence and continued
throughout the various military and civilian government till date. Even the creation of states as
response to demands from minority group has failed to properly address the issue. The
entrenchment of the principle of federal character in the constitution wherein national resources
(political appointments, employments, projects etc) are to be shared to reflect geo-political divides;
has not totally succeeded in allaying the fear of domination by major groups among minorities.
Marginalisation: part of the requirement of national integration is to stimulate sense of identities
among the citizenry. The context for the share of national opportunities and privileges and the
ravenous greed of the Nigerian power elites, have thrown up real or perceived marginalisation in the
scheme of things.
Religious Intolerance: Due to poor understanding of the religious tenets by many adherents of the
two main religions of Christianity and Islam, it is easy to manipulate religion to foment troubles that
often result in killings across religious divide and internal dislocations. This situation has reinforced
primordial mutual animosities.
Identity Politics: This involves the mobilisation of identity consciousness in order to create a mass
base of support for the ruling classes, and the elite generally, in their factional struggles in the
accumulation process. Also, identity politics connotes a relatively high degree of the subjective
entering into politics. (Jega2003p.16) The Nigerian politician often appropriates religious and ethnic
sentiments as planks to navigate the murky waters of politics.
These are some of the issues of national integration that advocates must confront.
THE MASS MEDIA and CIVIL SOCIETY: Towards Serving National Integration.
A useful and relevant way of proposing role both the mass media and the civil society can play in the
process of integrating the diverse people and cultures inhabiting the vast territory of the Nigerian
federation is to adopt a functional analysis.
MASS MEDIA FUNCTIONS.
Uyo (1989), has articulated the various contributions of scholars on what constitute the functions of
Mass media which he arranged into an apt acronym: PENIISE- Persuasion, Education News,
Information, Interpretation, selling, and entertainment. In explaining each of the functions, emphasis
is placed on the primary function a particular mass media message (a newspaper article, radio or TV
programme) is designed to achieve since it is possible for a message to perform more than one or two
of the functions. Thus:
Persuasion: are messages designed primarily to convince or convert its receivers (by
reasoning and arguments.
Education: are messages designed primarily to instruct or its receivers.
News: Messages are messages designed primarily acquaint its receivers with some recent
event.
Information: Messages are messages designed primarily to enrich its receivers’ store of
knowledge beyond sheer acquaintance.
Interpretation: Messages are messages designed primarily to explain to its receivers issues
and problems involved in events already known.
Selling: Messages are messages designed primarily to induce its receivers to buy a particular
product.
Entertainment: Messages are messages designed primarily amuse its receivers.
FUNCTIONS OF CIVIL SOCIETY
Following the treatise on civil society by (Egwu 2005;Ayee 2005) the functions of civil society is
herein summarized to be:Political: where the primary focus of civil society is to foster citizen participation in power
process, counter or limit the use of state power perceived to be excessive, supplement the role of
political parties. e.t.c
Welfarism: Where the primary focus of the civil society group is the articulation, protection,
promotion and advocating for members’ rights as employee and citizens within a defined territory and
space.
Empowerment: this can be two: (1)civil empowerment Where the primary focus is to
disseminate information relevant to citizens’ collective pursuit and defence of their interest and values
e,g, accountability, morality, inequalities, and injustices;(2) basic empowerment where the focus is on
creating access to life skills such as literacy, health, adult education e.t.c
Communalism: Where the primary focus is adopting the principles and practices of
communal living or ownership or support for communal society or loyalty to an ethnic or religious
group than to society in general.
The foregoing functional typology of the mass media and civil society groups provide the
working template for mobilizing the citizenry for national integration that will and/ or can lead to
national development in Nigeria.
Mass Media and Civil Society: Towards National Integration and Development.
It must be realized that for both the mass media and the civil society to achieve their objectives and
effectively perform their functions; there must be lateral cooperation between them. The imperative of
this is informed by the obvious symbiosis in their functions and objectives.
Secondly, the Mass Media and the Civil Society must realized their strategic positions in the task of
national integration and national development. The Civil society, through their activities; supply the
mass of information, facts issues and opinions which the Mass Media feed on in performing their
functions.
Thirdly, most of the issues of national integration identified above are creation of civil society
activities while the mass media contribute to their resolution and/or aggravation. Therefore, the
interest of national integration and development would be better served if both seek better
understanding of issues involved.
Conclusion
National development must be seen from different perspectives. The identification of the
means of achieving it is equally as important as the task itself. It is this realization that
informed the present efforts. The paper has identified national integration as a requirement
for national development especially in diverse culture and communities that have been
wielded together by colonial forces. It is the contention of this paper that the strategies of
social mobilization are potent tools that societal actors and institutions must master to
confront the task of national development through national integration.
.
REFERENCE
Adidi Uyo, (1987) Mass communication Characteristics and classification. New York,
civilities international
MAMSER HANDBOOK, (1988) Directorate for Social Mobilisation
Narula, Uma (1994), Development communication, Theory and practice, New Deihi, Haranand Publications.
Stanislaw Czaphilcki, Communication and Social Mobilisation for Child Survival Akinfeleye .R. (ed)
Health communication and development, Ibadan Spectrum Books Limited p. 75
The Nigerian constitution 1999.