In the lead-up to the Edo State governorship election scheduled for September 21, a comprehensive information ecosystem assessment conducted by the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) War Room revealed a range of information manipulation strategies aimed at influencing public perception and undermining the electoral process. These strategies, often targeted at political figures, government institutions, and vulnerable groups, are designed to foster distrust and sway voter behaviour.
One notable disinformation narrative falsely claimed that Governor Godwin Obaseki had taken the Oba of Benin to court, which was leveraged to exploit cultural sensitivities and create a voting backlash. Other narratives accused the governor of re-bagging Federal Government rice for distribution as state provided palliatives, further sowing doubts about his governance. Gendered disinformation also emerged, targeting women in politics, particularly Edo’s First Lady, Betsy Obaseki, who was subjected to misogynistic attacks to undermine her influence.
Information manipulation was not limited to individuals but extended to regional biases and electoral integrity. For instance, claims of government neglect in certain areas and misleading reports about damaged voting machines sought to question the preparedness of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and discourage voter turnout. Political parties, including the Labour Party, highlighted how false narratives are used to disrupt candidates’ campaigns and manipulate public opinion.
Civil sociey groups and women’s organizations raised concerns about the institutionalized marginalization of women in politics, exacerbated by entrenched patriarchal norms and information manipulation targeting female leaders. Additionally, the accessibility of reliable information for marginalized groups such as Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) remains a challenge.
INEC, alngside other stakeholders, acknowledged the spread of false information through social media as a critical issue and emphasized its efforts to combat disinformation through public education, collaboration with security agencies, and inclusive electoral practices. However, gaps remain in addressing these challenges, particularly in rural areas where internet access and political education are limited.
Overall, th assessment underscores the need for stronger legislative frameworks, media literacy, and collaborative efforts between political parties, media, and civil society to curb the damaging effects of information manipulation on Edo State’s electoral process
The challenge of information manipulation has assumed an increasingly worrisome dimension, especially in the context of the threats it poses to democracies all over the world. Across the region of West Africa, recent democratic reversals werepreceded by elaborate information manipulation and foreign influence campaigns.
Learned findings have shown that in West Africa, several actors both online and offline typically create and disseminate fake misinformation and disinformation. These include individuals, the state, foreign actors, diaspora communities, the media, specialist consultancy firms, online influencers, and automated bot networks.
In the view of information integrity experts, some of the actors engaged in peddling disinformation do it for financial gain, while others engage in spreading disinformation for political influence. Yet another perspective is that there are actors who are part of the wider efforts to maintain authoritarian systems.
Information is one of the critical inputs, which shapes the democratic process. If manipulated without concerted efforts to counter the narratives peddled, it could affect the electoral processes and the important activities of various stakeholders. As a corollary, the power of the voter and the constitutional imperative, which promotes the notion that sovereignty belongs to the people, would be seriously undermined. Nigeria’s democracy and the entire electoral process are already hobbled by several challenges, which have severely constrained the participation of the people in political and governance processes. Information manipulation is therefore a major threat that needs to be addressed to safeguard democracy. At the sub-national level, information manipulation affects the robust participation of the electorate. As the final build up to the September 21, 2024, off-cycle governorship election in Edo State draws the attention of Nigerians and the international community, addressing the threat of disinformation remains a critical aspect of ensuring the credibility of the electoral process.
The Edo governorship poll is the fourth off-cycle state governorship election to be conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), since the 2023 general elections. With the conclusion of political party primaries and full-blown political campaigns already underway, the political actors have been engaging in various activities to engage the electorate to present various governance options.
In the context of the political contests, the information environment is a critical component of the entire electioneering process, especially as offline and online media spaces become avenues for = political contestants to market their ideas while pushing to assert their dominance in the political terrain. Like the patterns witnessed during the 2023 general elections, the information ecosystem in Edo State has been characterized by a variety of narratives driven by various dimensions of identity. As such, a good deal of the disinformation, which has been peddled in the build up to the election has sought to deploy identity politics as key actors in the space seek to win the partisan advantage through narratives, which could appeal to the base instincts of voters.
Given the seriousness of the challenge posed by information manipulation, the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD West Africa) with support from the National Democratic Institute (NDI) conducted a pre-election assessment of the information ecosystem in Edo. The primary objective of the assessment was to evaluate the information landscape and identify its potential vulnerabilities to
disinformation campaigns, such as social media platforms, news outlets, or communication channels.
A critical aspect of the information assessment was to establish contact with relevant stakeholders, including government officials, electoral authorities, media organizations, and civil society groups, to coordinate efforts to combat disinformation. Equally crucial to the efforts to combat disinformation and all other strands of information manipulation was the need to provide training, especially for fact-checking initiatives at the community level. The information assessment therefore enabled CDD to identify the knowledge gaps to provide training and resources to local fact-checkers and journalists to effectively identify and counter false information.
The process of collecting data about the information manipulation trends prevalent in the electoral process involves documenting the realities and lived experiences of the people on the ground. In line with the datasets required, the assessment methodology leveraged on Focus Group Discussions and Key Informant Interviews.
In the course of this assessment, the CDD Team conducted several interviews with relevant stakeholders in the state including the state office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the National Orientation Agency (NOA). The assessment also facilitated robust engagements with political parties, gender-based organisations, journalists, sociocultural youth bodies, and civil society organisations. The data collected brought to the fore the most widely shared and damaging false claims, which combined with identity-driven political rhetoric by politicians to confuse voters and undermine information integrity. Importantly, in the course of this information assessment, the data collected pointed at the respective roles being played by bad actors, including the origins of disinformation campaigns, such as social media ccounts, websites, or individuals spreading false information.
The information assessment was similarly able to document the trends and patterns of disinformation, especially in the context of how false narratives evolve and spread. Amongst others, it also revealed the demographics that are more susceptible to disinformation and the gendered nature of it.
Pre-Election Information Manipulation Trends in Edo State
The pre-election period in Edo State has been marked by noticeable trends, including tactics mean to undermine rival opponents, verbal attacks aimed at undermining the participation of women, and the targeting of less dominant political parties with narratives, which weaken their ability to have their voices heard in the electoral process. As evident in the close analysis of the fact-checks produced by the CDD War Room, these trends have combined to undermine the integrity of the information space. Diverse insights and perspectives have been gleaned from the information environment assessment carried out in the state ahead of the September 21 election. These trends encompass a range of strategies, being deployed by the peddlers of disinformation to have their vice-like grip over the information ecosystem.
Their strategies are aimed at influencing public perception, undermining political stakeholders on the opposing side of the partisan divide, and in other cases, sowing distrust in the electoral process. Several claims checked by the CDD Countering Information Manipulation War Room targeted political stakeholders and government institutions. For instance, one of the dominant narratives in the pre-election period was the allegations, which emerged that Governor Obaseki had taken the Oba of Benin to court. The peddlers of this piece of disinformation leveraged on it as an attempt to stir cultural tensions, knowing that the personality of the Oba of Benin, is highly revered, both as a
traditional and spiritual leader of the Benin Kingdom, Edo South Senatorial Zone. By peddling the claim that the sitting governor was disrespecting a hallowed traditional institution, the narrative found a typical entry point for political expediency and brinkmanship.
The likely desired outcome of the information manipulation campaign is the voting backlash against the political party of the governor. While there is truth to some ongoing legal disputes, the claims exploited cultural sensitivities for political gain.
Disinformation also extended to accusations about lack of transparency and accountability in public resource mismanagement. A claim in this mold circulated first online and later offline, to the effect that Governor Obaseki re bagged rice provided by the Federal Government for public distribution as palliatives and presented the items as they originated from the Edo State government. Although rice deliveries were confirmed, the lack of concrete evidence regarding re-bagging left the claim unverified.
The disinformation created space for distrust in the governor’s handling of public resources and fed into the perception of alleged corruption and widespread governance failure.
