2025 Presidential Election: Journalists Raise Questions On The Precarious Financial Situation Of Most Media Organs, And Overzealous Of Many Election Officials

Journalists ask anti –corruption crusader, Ntumfor Barrister Nico Halle, what a reporter without money should do, if a politician offers him ‘transport money’ to go to the field for coverage?   

 Ntumfor Halle minces no words that ‘transport money’ is corruption, and that it is a matter for a journalist to decide whether to maintain his integrity, or to sell it for 30 pieces of silver.

The precarious financial situation of most media organs in the country today, and thus the poverty that journalists have been plunged  into, was the key issue that came out of the series of questions that journalists drawn from across the Littoral Region, posed during the question and answer session, at a seminar in Douala on November 5, 2024. The questions followed a brilliant presentation that was made by the crusader for peace and justice, legal luminary and election expert, Ntumfor Barrister Nico Halle, at the seminar that was organized for the journalists in Douala by the Littoral Regional Delegation of Communication. The seminar was on the challenges that media organs face in the coverage of presidential elections in Cameroon. The seminar was organized to prepare journalists of the Littoral Region for a better coverage of the crucial 2025 presidential election.

Overzealous Election Officials

One other issue that came from the several questions that journalists at the Douala seminar raised, was that of the overzealousness of quite a number of election officials, who do not allow journalists to do their work especially around polling stations on election day proper.  The journalists asked Ntumfor Halle how they can be able to do an effective coverage of an election, if election officials chase away journalists from polling stations. It should be noted that Ntumfor Halle who is an election expert and international election observer, was a member of the National Elections Observatory that was commonly known as ONEL for several years and that during those years he supervised the municipal, legislative and presidential elections.  Suffice to say that Halle has over the years organized, supervised and observed many elections, both in the secular world and in the Church. As an international election observer, Halle was for example assigned by the African Union to observe presidential election in Zimbabwe, which is a very difficult political terrain.

Meanwhile in response to the complaint about overzealous of some election officials that was raised by journalists at the Douala seminar, Ntumfor Halle once more laid emphasis on the need for reporters who cover elections, to have a mastery of the Electoral Law or Electoral Code of the country. He said a journalist who has a mastery of Cameroon’s Electoral Law, knows what to do, and what not to do, around a polling station.  He said being a journalist does not give one the power to just do anything around a polling station. He reiterated that if a journalist has a mastery of the Electoral Law, he will know what to do, and when to do it, around polling stations. Ntumfor Halle said if a reporter knows the Electoral Law, and operates around a polling station in respect of the Law, he should be courageous, and stand his ground, if any election official were to ask him to leave. He said when even an overzealous election official ask a reporter to leave,  and realizes that the reporter masters the Electoral Law, and is acting in respect of the provision of the Law, the  official will backtrack.

Ntunfor Halle also advised that if it happens that journalists are supposed to obtain special badges to cover an election, those that have to cover the election should make sure they get the badges. If not, they will be chased away from the polling stations, and then they will go complaining that journalists were driven from polling stations, whereas they were in order.

Ntumfor Halle also strongly advised journalists cover elections in Cameroon, to follow what the Cameroon Electoral Law says, and not to get into a practice considered illegal in Cameroon, because it is done in another country.  He was reacting to an observation that was made by a journalist at the seminar, that at the last presidential election in Senegal which was in March 2024, media organs published result trends, and that it contributed to  making the election transparent and acceptable.

 Poverty, Corruption, Integrity

Meanwhile as aforementioned, the majority of questions from journalists at the Douala seminar were on the precarious financial situation of most medial organs in the country today, especially newspaper organs, where salaries very rarely paid or no longer exist, and reporters in the field also have no coverage allowance. Yet reporters are expected to send in reports. The journalists noted that Ntumfor Halle in his presentation strongly denounced all forms of corruption, which  he said includes ‘transport money’ given to some journalists by some politicians for them to go and cover their events. The question the journalist asked Ntunfor Halle was what a reporter should do, if he has not been provided ‘transport money’ by his newspaper or radio go the field and cover an election campaign or even the election proper, and a politicians offers to  facilitate things for him by providing ‘transport money’.

Before responding to the question, Ntumfor Halle first expressed concern with the general situation of the private media, especially the print media, in the country. He stated that  he has for a number of years now being an advocate of State subvention to the media, which plays an important role in the society or country. He made it clear that he was not talking about the chicken feed being given to the media at times as subvention by the Government. He explained that his advocacy is for the institution of an annual amount of State subvention to the media that is voted into Law by parliament.

“There Is No Excuse For Corruption”

Meanwhile Ntumfor Halle who is also an anti – corruption crusader, minced no words that what the journalists referred to as ‘transport money’ is corruption. He said he was not ruling out the possibility that somebody who is generous, can out of his goodwill make a gesture or give anassistance to a journalist or whoever. But he said a genuine goodwill that is expressed, expects nothing in return.  Ntumfor said there is nothing like a goodwill gesture by a politician. for whatever a politician does, he expects something in return. Ntumfor Halle said nobody should thus be naïve, for when a politician gives a journalist ‘transport money’ to go and cover an event, he expects the reporter to do a report that favours him, or else there will be trouble between the two persons.  He asserted that the reporter that receives the ‘transport money, knows well what the politician expects of him in return. He it was certain that the journalists at the Douala seminar,  all know so well in their minds, that what they term  ‘transport money’, is  corruption.

So Ntumfor Halle stated that when a journalist receives ‘transport money’ from a politician to go and cover an election campaign or whatever, the journalist compromises his neutrality, as he is forced to bend the report in favour of the politician. “When a journalist, receives the so called transport money from a politician, to go and cover an event, his hands are tied, He cannot do an objective report. He bends his report to please the politician who gave him money. As it is commonly said, he who pays the piper, dictates the tune”, Ntumfor Halle pointed out.

“Even The Person That Corrupts A Journalists, Considers Him As Not Being Credible’

The anti – corruption crusader, Ntumfor Halle, reiterated that when a reporter collects money and does an unbalanced report, or report lies, he discredits both himself and his media organ, especially in the eyes of people who know the truth. Halle asserted that even the politician who gives money to a journalist to do a report in a way that favours him, in reality has no respect for the journalist, because he considers him in his mind as somebody who is not credible. “When a journalist refuses to take money from somebody to do a report the way he wants it done, he is certainly not happy with the journalist. But the truth is that in his mind he holds the  journalists  in high esteem, as he knows he is somebody credible”, Halle asserted.

Ntumfor Halle said  the question as to what a journalist should do if he has no money to go for coverage, and is offered ‘transport money’ by a politician,  finds its answer in a question – Does the journalists wants to maintain his integrity, or he is prepared to sell  his integrity for 30 pieces of silver. Halle insisted that corruption is corruption, and that there can be no excuse for any form of corruption, even if it is termed ‘transport money’.

By Joe Dinga Pefok (Uncle Joe)

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