Premium Times Books, the book publishing arm of the Premium Times Group, has announced the release of a new book titled ‘Cyber Politics: Social Media, Social Demography and Voting Behaviour in Nigeria’ authored by Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan, a directorate staff of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC)
The 460 page book with 12 chapters is being marketed physically and online bookshops since Monday in a unique alignment with the symbolic rituals of June 12, Nigeria’s Democracy Day.
Like June 12, which created a watershed in the country as Nigerians sought to rupture the yoke of military rule through the ballot, this book by Omoniyi Ibietan engages with another national watershed moment, as the nascent digital culture involving Internet use, and particularly the social media, converges with the articulation of voter choice, ultimately impacting Nigeria’s electoral fortunes in the process.
Nigeria’s 2015 presidential election is utilised as the sounding board from which analyses that offer great insights into the future of voting behaviour in the country are made in this new title, that is both skilful in its rendition and ground-cutting in its intellectual approach.
In an Introduction he wrote for the book, Dapo Olorunyomi, the Chief Executive Officer of the Premium Times Group, said: “The universe of this new book is intriguing in its exploration of the “digital effect on elections.”
He also pointed out how Dr. Ibietan’s work demonstrates “clearly that social media systems do enrich electoral democracy by expanding access to registration, participation, voting and organising at a scale we have never contemplated.”
He further observed that, “In the context of the Nigerian market framework, we also get to appreciate, through his lenses, the comparative appeal of each of the social channels. WhatsApp is the battle axe, while Twitter, hysterical though it is, remains limited.” Also, “Ibietan demonstrates how Facebook appeals to age and its abstract commitment to attention and community makes its credentials for advancing democracy a suspect.”
Equally, in his Foreword to the book, Umar Danbatta, a professor and executive vice chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, noted that: “the author situates the historical context of Nigerian politics and democracy” and more so “…the nexus between social media and voting behaviour, and the influence of the social media ecosystem among others in the electoral process.”
Importantly, as Professor Danbatta put it: “The book is a compelling narrative, a scholar’s guide and companion on the various political communication themes it interprets. It is difficult to put down this work once you are drawn by its alluring and free-flowing prose and incisive analysis.”
A commentator and former Minister of Information and Communication in Nigeria, Frank Nweke II, said “the book represents an uncommon body of work by an intellectual visionary”, adding that the “extrapolation of the lessons and recommendations of this book will find perfect expression in other climes beyond the 2015 Nigerian general elections scenario.”
Nweke commends “Dr Ibietan for this remarkable work, and…recommend(s) this book for practitioners and academics in the fields of strategic communications, new technologies, and social change.”
The author of this new book, Omoniyi Ibietan, holds a doctorate in Political Communication from North-West University in South Africa, and earlier degrees in Communication Arts from the Universities of Uyo and Ibadan.
With a career spanning journalism, stints in the civil society and academia, he is presently a directorate cadre staff in the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), where he heads the media relations management unit.
Over the past two decades, the author has researched deeply in the emergent interface between communication studies and psephology, which explains his richly nuanced understanding and far sight into issues involved.
