Eben Enasco Reporting
EVERY gubernatorial election cycle in recent times in Edo State has been shaped by the emergence of a new ideology or the exploitation of an existing one but is viewed to be more complicated
Some in most quarters believe that the Edo governorship election will be like any other election but with few thoughts to apprehend.
Quite often, politicians are dazed with ideas to ruin an opponent during the grueling campaign battles to stake the highest acceptance by the electorates.
We have seen cases where contestants shy away from their objectives, particularly on how best to work out modalities to reposition the economy by churning out people’s oriented policies.
The fact of one of such messaging incident was the billboard placed by the PDP, at the Ring Road between Sakpoba Road junction against Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu where his former right-hand man, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole was seen openly ventilating his anger to demeaning that stirred negative effects on the integrity of the redeemed pastor.
The onslaught could only be described as political persecution by his opponent to score political points.
This contributed to Pastor Ize Iyamu unknowingly surrendering over 25% of his votes by estimated unofficial counts to the incumbent Governor Godwin Obaseki who won in a landslide margins to retain his seat.
However, three parties in 2024, in Edo State, are viewed by observers as seriously pushing for the honey bag but two seem to have an edge over one. The ruling PDP and the Main Opposition Party, APC are the heavyweight. Like the ruling PDP, the Labour Party, LP, Peter Obi’s effect seems to have waned, and the party is facing serious division with two sides emerging as the authentic National Chairman of the Party.
The situation in both the Labor Party, LP, and the Ruling Party, PDP in the state if not resolved soon would be APC’s gain to cruise.
THE MEDIA EFFECTS
The future is here, and for many in the media business, it’s terrifying.
To understand threats facing the various political platforms during the upcoming governorship campaign, there is a need to create a scene, the kind of authentic footage that could flummox politicians on Election Day.
The results will be sobering because of the controversial nature of the assignment
In addition to threats posed by “deep fakes,” journalists will have to fight a battle for the truth on multiple fronts, grappling with tricky coverage of the criminal proceedings and sagging trust in the news media.
This will affect every aspect of political procedures, from how they operate their businesses to the new competitors that rise, to the new sources of fake or manipulated media that sprout and spread.
Most election years, coverage of the grueling campaign trail dominates the airwaves, as candidates make the quadrennial pilgrimage to seemingly every fish fry, state fair, and union hall between the coasts.
Things will be a little different this year, throwing a curveball to journalists and media executives making coverage decisions.
Most contestants in what is out-judged smaller parties are going to be pushing a story of political persecution because competing with the likes of PDP and Falsehood Partner in Crime, the All Progressive Congress, APC, will mean they have to do a concrete merger to oust them.
Political persecution is exactly what many citizens believe other political parties would face which could pose an entirely different challenge to mainstream political platforms
The overwhelming majority of coverage had shown that the press had rendered its guilty verdict before the jury could have a chance to weigh in.
The hardest thing, by far, is for the media to separate the objective, legal facts from what their obvious preferences are.
The artificial video of contenders is just one example of the many types of inauthentic content journalists will grapple with in 2024, especially with the advent of social media reporters whose reports are not vented by certified editors
Elections in the country have already been disrupted by fake audio clips released before the election, spreading disinformation about candidates during a crucial period.
This is a nonprofit that exposes human rights abuses posed by emerging technologies like deep fakes and generative AI.
Deep fake technology has become so ubiquitous that it is now possible to create inauthentic photos, videos, and audio faster than it takes to debunk them. In addition, most mainstream news organizations have not invested in the resources required to verify and cover misinformation on a tight deadline.
Knowing that people don’t have the skills to do the detection, it’s quite easy to say, ‘Oh, that was faked,’ and know that it’s going to be hard for people to prove that it’s real.
Still, there are some opportunities for attentive deep fake sleuths
While audio is more complicated, images and video have a range of context clues that can help prove whether a snippet of footage is genuine, and you can compare falsified images of an event against genuine ones to spot inconsistencies.
DECLINE OF TRUST IN ELECTORAL UMPIRE
One of the biggest challenges facing political groups in the 2024 gubernatorial election may not be fully related to emerging technology or political attacks but to the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC.
Nigerians just don’t trust INEC, the way they used to, experts say, and that could have major consequences come election time.
About a quarter of Nigerians surveyed by the Civil Society Organizations Center in 2023 said they don’t have much trust in the information they get from the electoral umpire to conduct free and fair elections after the flaw that marred the presidential election.
That number is even higher among opposition parties, the plebians, and the timid just with roughly a third of those professing little trust in their credibility.
Deep fakes and accusations of bias from politicians are particularly damaging because they reach voters who are already distrustful of the Electoral umpire.
To combat sagging trust, the electoral umpire must make and keep promises and needs to be more transparent with society, showing them how figures become actual results.
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