IN THIS NEWS:
- Title: Cyber Politics – Social Media, Social Demography and Voting Behaviour in Nigeria
- Author: Dr. Omoniyi P. Ibietan
- Publisher: Premium Times Books
- Year: 2023
The Association of Communication Scholars and Professionals of Nigeria (ACSPN), has commended Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan, the author of the book: ‘Cyber Politics: Social Media, Social Demography and Voting Behaviour in Nigeria’.
Prof. Umaru Pate, President of ACSPN, showed the approval recently, during a special book reading and further review at the University of Ibadan, Oyo State.
He congratulated Dr. Ibietan on the successful publication and public presentation of his book.
“I congratulate Dr Omoniyi Ibietan on the successful publication and presentation of his book on cyber politics in Nigeria,” he said.
Prof. Pate, who himself is a seasoned professor of Media and Society, described Dr. Ibietan as an active member of ACSPN, who is in the frontline of promoting innovative communication education through publications and other knowledge sharing platforms, which aligns with the association objectives.
“Without a doubt, the academic community and communication scholarship require a deeper understanding of the evolving trend, influence, and impact of cyber politics in the country. I am glad Dr. Ibietan has been able to undertake intensive and extensive research in the area. Happily, the study has been transformed into a textbook for wider circulation,” he said.
Prof. Pate, who doubles as the vice chancellor, Federal University, Kashere, Gombe State, noted with a cursory reading of the book indicated that the author has been able to achieve the objectives of contributing to the conceptual and empirical dimensions of the subject in the context of political communication.
“Personally, I am enriched by the arguments and conclusions in the book. The book has increased my understanding of the relationship between the ever-growing social media and politics in the country,” he said, stressing that this perspective is very important for obvious reasons, some of which relate to the popularity and influence of the new media, particularly among the most active components of the population.
ACSPN, he said, welcomed the book as a positive addition to the growing body of literature in the area especially as it gives the Nigerian context, and he recommended it as a worthy book for all students of communication studies, political science and allied fields.
“Our political tacticians and gladiators and other scholars of the interface between society and information and communication technologies will find the text appropriate and generously useful in helping them to deeply understand the strategies and impact of the social media in Nigerian politics.
“Definitely, the author’s effort is clearly manifested in the quality of the content in the book, its appropriate theoretical grounding, and sound conclusions that are reliably valid in the Nigerian context,” he said.
While congratulating Dr. Ibietan, ACSPN enjoined interested individuals to get copies of the book for increased understanding of the relationship between social media and politics in Nigeria.
Also in his remarks, Prof. Abiodun Salawu of the North-West University, South Africa and supervisor of Omoniyi Ibietan‘s doctoral thesis, described the author as a testimonial on scholarship and commitment.
“I had the privilege of supervising the PhD thesis from which this book by Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan emanated. It was a pleasure supervising Omoniyi’s thesis as he was very conversant with the literature of the study. I must say that I learnt from the literature he used,” Salawu said.
Another of his strength, Prof. Salawu said, was that he was able to do effective academic writing. This made reading his work not tortuous but exhilarating.
“He was dedicated to the work that he took a year leave from his place of work to come over to Mahikeng in South Africa to exclusively focus on the study. I can say that the study was effectively done within this one year,” he applauded, expressing believe the ideas, findings and recommendations contained in the book are now available to a wider readership.
“Congratulations to the author,” Prof. Salawu declared.
