When Journalists Become Political Courtiers and Interviews Become Political Theatre By Lawson Akhigbe

A democracy does not always die at the barrel of a gun. Sometimes, it dies beneath television studio lights, while journalists entrusted with holding power accountable sit silently as politicians explain why nobody can hold them accountable.

The Anatomy of a Rigged Election: Rivers State, Electoral Legitimacy and the Dangerous Silence After the Ballot By Lawson Akhigbe

The BBC reviewed results from more than 6,000 polling stations in Rivers State. Its investigation found that the polling-unit figures it could obtain suggested that Obi had won the state by a substantial margin. The BBC also reported that Tinubu’s official declared total was more than 106,000 votes higher than its polling-station tally, while Obi’s official figure was more than 50,000 lower.