TWITTER AND IT’S INFLUENCE FACILITATING GOOD GOVERNANCE IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF IMO STATE)

TWITTER AND IT’S INFLUENCE FACILITATING GOOD GOVERNANCE IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF IMO STATE)

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Background Of The Study

The role of the media as the society's watchdog has evolved over the course of time, and the information and monitoring functions it performs are now regarded essential to democratic democracy and efficient government. In a paradoxical way, one could argue that social media is a 21st-century instrument of mass expression and a society's watch dog; the information generation, distribution, and consumption functions of social media may be considered a sine qua non for democracy and good governance if they are appropriately exploited. The notions of good governance were incorporated as a valid condition for democratic government in Nigeria's constitution back in 1999, just like they are in the constitutions of the vast majority of other democratic states. The landscape of media has been profoundly reshaped as a consequence of the rise of the Internet as the new mass medium of the twenty-first century. There is a level playing field when it comes to the production and consumption of news as a direct result of the increased speed, decreased cost, and broader reach of information distribution (Prat and Stromberg, 2011)

As a platform for social media, Twitter stands out due to the distinctive characteristics that it possesses. As was said in the beginning of the article, the fact that Twitter conversations are limited to 140 characters has an effect on the method in which people participate. This method of interacting is fundamentally distinct from that of Facebook, which allows its users a greater degree of autonomy and length than what is available on Twitter. When compared to other social media platforms, Twitter has a variety of distinguishing benefits, the most notable of which being the media updates, the power of immediacy, and the celebrity cult. The structure of Twitter makes it particularly well-suited for media updates; all it takes to disseminate information is 140 characters. The complete press releases could be distributed at a later time. Second, "the immediacy of Twitter distinguishes it from other social media sites." Users are able to practically witness, report on, and comment on events that are taking on all over the world in real time (Balam, 2017). Twitter also provides public figures and celebrities with a straightforward and speedy method to market their firms, increase the number of individuals who follow them, and keep people up to date on any news they want to provide (whether it be actual news or lifestyle news). "This is yet another feature that distinguishes Twitter apart from other social media platforms. It is utilized by a wide variety of famous people and other prominent figures in public life. As a direct consequence of this, Twitter has emerged as the social media platform of choice for keeping up with celebrities (Quora.com, undated). These three main characteristics of Twitter have been utilized in the context of political discourse in Nigeria. As of the year 2014, there are five Nigerian politicians that have celebrity statues on Twitter. They are as follows: Reuben Abati, @abati1990 (who served as the then-spokesperson for President Goodluck Jonathan); Nasir El-Rufai, @elrufai (who served as the then-deputy secretary of the opposition party); Femi Fani-Kayode, @realFFK (who is a controversial politician); Atiku Abubakar, @atiku (who served as the former vice president of Nigeria); and Ob (Matuluko, 2014). These individuals were frequently featured in the media for political reasons, and because they had a sizable fan base, they participated in a greater number of Twitter battles. (Matuluko, 2014). For instance, Dr. Abati altered the way the Nigerian president communicates with the public by using his own personal Twitter account, @abati1990, to reveal the news that President Jonathan had fired members of the Nigerian government. The President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has just dismissed Alhaji Ahmed Ali Gulak from his position as Special Adviser on Political Affairs. The information was disseminated to the public through the Twitter account of the presidential spokesperson, Dr. Reuben Abati (Egbunike, 2014). "On February 20, 2014, Nigerians and the whole world were shook by a tweet by presidential spokesperson, Dr. Reuben Abati, who announced Sanusi's suspension through social media," writes Vincent Nwanma. This was not the first time that Dr. Abati made use of Twitter's power of immediacy in breaking news from the White House. I, along with a number of other journalists, found both the news and the channel that it was carried over to be really intriguing. In especially for a spokesperson for the presidential administration, this new development marked a pivotal point in the use of social media for the dissemination of news. Abati, a journalist and the former head of the editorial board of the Guardian newspaper, chose to tweet the suspension, which essentially launched the story into the public domain and left journalists scurrying to catch up with the rest of the globe. He was the person who first reported the news and also served as the source for the information. He was the first to report the news, and he continued to update it with new information as it became available (Nwanma, Unpublished manuscript, 2012). These instances illustrate the potential for immediate communication that Twitter offers, a feature that Nigerian politicians, political analysts, and active citizens make advantage of. As a result, there is an urgent requirement to investigate the role that Twitter plays in enabling good governance in Nigeria.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

There is little question that the use of social media in political campaigns is widespread, and this trend does not appear to be slowing down any time soon. In addition, there is a substantial body of research that supports the importance of social media in political movements. The application of the SWOT analysis method to the use of social media in campaigning for office and maintaining democratic sustainability has garnered a surprisingly small amount of attention. Nigeria is a secular and capitalist nation, and it is the largest democracy in all of Africa. This relates to the management of the election of people's representatives, which is one of the most important events that takes place in the globe. During the general elections in Nigeria in 2015, there were over 150,000 polling places spread around the country (The Nigerian general election of 2015 was the 5th quadrennial election to be conducted since the end of military rule in 1999). During this election cycle (Prat,2011). The electoral roll is a list that includes everyone who is registered to vote in the constituency on that particular electoral body. Voting is restricted to just those persons whose names are included on the official voting list. The results of the general elections brought about new leadership at both the national and the provincial levels of government in the country. Twitter was used in addition to more conventional sources of information such as newspapers, magazines, radio, and television in order to test its viability as a possible interactive medium. A number of politicians were able to make effective use of Twitter as a platform to communicate with a diverse group of voters, notably younger ones. It has been demonstrated via the use of biometric card readers that the concept of electronically coordinated voting is not only implausible but also impossible to perfect. There is no way to refute the fact that Twitter and other social media platforms have evolved into indispensable resources that make global good governance possible. It is solidifying its position as a trustworthy tool for shaping public opinion and exerting influence, and this trend is expected to continue. As soon as they realized the power of this medium, a number of Nigerian politicians jumped on board and made significant use of it in their political campaigns. They also utilized it to tell people about the things they had accomplished during their time in office (Prat, 2011).

1.3 Objective Of The Study

The primary objective of the study is as follows

1. To evaluate the role of twitter on creating political awareness in Nigeria.
2. To find out the influence of twitter in calling out corrupt leaders in Nigeria.
3. To find out if twitter is an efficient platform for facilitating for good governance in Nigeria.

1.4 Research Questions

The following have been prepared for the study

1. Does twitter play a significant role in creating political awareness in Nigeria?
2. Does twitter have have an effective influence in calling out corrupt leaders in Nigeria?
3. Is twitter an efficient platform for facilitating for good governance in Nigeria?

1.5 Research Hypotheses

H0: Twitter does not play any significant role in facilitating good governance in Nigeria.

Ha: Twitter plays a significant role in facilitating good governance in Nigeria.

1.6 Significance of the Study

This study focuses on the influence of twitter in advocating for good governance. Hence this study will be significant to the Nigerian government as it will see the need to allow twitter be used in the country because of it accessibility and usefulness in sharing news about the state of Nigeria.

This study will be of benefit to the academic community as it will contribute to the existing literature.

1.7 Scope of the Study

This study will evaluate the role of twitter on creating political awareness in Nigeria. The study will also find out the influence of twitter in calling out corrupt leaders in Nigeria. This study will further find out if twitter is an efficient platform for facilitating for good governance in Nigeria. Lastly, the study will compare the advantages of twitter over the other forms of social media for clamoring for good governance in Nigeria. Hence this study will be delimited to twitter users in Lagos state.

1.8 Limitation of the Study

This study was constrained by a number of factors which are as follows:

Just like any other research, ranging from unavailability of needed accurate materials on the topic under study, inability to get data, financial constraint, was faced by the researcher ,in getting relevant materials and in printing and collation of questionnaires

Time factor: time factor pose another constraint since having to shuttle between writing of the research and also engaging in other academic work making it uneasy for the researcher

1.9 Definition of Terms

Twitter:

Websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking.

1.10 Organization of the Study

The study is categorized into five chapters. The first chapter presents the background of the study, statement of the problem, objective of the study, research questions and hypothesis, the significance of the study, scope/limitations of the study, and definition of terms. The chapter two covers the  review of literature with emphasis on conceptual framework, theoretical framework, and empirical review. Likewise, the chapter three which is the research methodology, specifically covers the research design, population of the study,  sample size determination,  sample size, abnd selection technique and procedure, research instrument and administration, method of data collection, method of data analysis, validity and reliability of the study, and ethical consideration. The second to last chapter being the chapter four presents the data presentation and analysis, while the last chapter(chapter five) contains the summary, conclusion and recommendation.

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