Chapter one

Introduction

1.1 Background of the study

Coronavirus (Covid-19) is an infectious disease that triggers respiratory illnesses ranging from a simple cold to more serious respiratory problems. It began in December 2019 at the Hunan seafood market in Wuhan, China, where live bats, snakes, raccoon dogs, and other wild animals were sold (Shereen et al., 2020, pp. 91–98), and the World Health Organization proclaimed it a pandemic on March 11, 2020. (WHO, 2020). After its discovery, the virus is said to have caused 512,311 deaths worldwide, out of a staggering total of 10,514,028 positive cases, which unfortunately grows exponentially every day (WHO, 2020). An Italian man was the virus's first survivor in Nigeria. Nigeria is attempting to halt the accelerated spread of Covid-19 by enacting an urgent lockdown of the country's main epicenters of Lagos, Ogun, and Abuja: the country's economic and administrative hubs, where coronavirus cases have been on the rise. Any state governors have taken preventive measures to stop the epidemic from spreading by shutting their "borders." Such initiatives include prohibiting public gatherings of people in mosques, athletic arenas, and cemeteries, as well as national school closures. These achievements can be traced not only to adequate healthcare services, but also to the country's social media effects.

Channels, which include WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, have become common networking and interaction tools for both the government and the general public. On the other hand, social media is often used as a political tool for disseminating news and intelligence that is founded on stereotypes and speculations at best. 

1.2       STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The aim of government is to protect human life and property. Locke (1689) suggests a civil contract in which a legal government is established to secure the lives, possessions, and liberties of those who reside within the community. In this regard, the government's job is to provide an enabling atmosphere for economic productivity and development by safeguarding private property. These government roles have become essential for people to spend their capital and energy in constructive processes for the country's overall growth (Ismail and Imoughele, 2015; Meyer and Meyer, 2016).

To combat the spread of Covid-19, policymakers around the world have begun to implement a variety of precautionary steps such as self-isolation and lockout. Personal hygiene habits such as regular hand washing with soap and water or the use of an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, using a face mask, and keeping a social and physical distance of at least 1 meter in public gatherings have also been recommended as ways to limit the spread of Covid-19 (WHO, 2020; NCDC).

Conspiracy theories are at the heart of the Covid-19 pandemic in Nigeria. One such belief is that Covid-19 does not exist and that it is just a way for the government to funnel public funds to private pockets. Since the people's confidence in government is poor, this position pervades the public sphere (Odima, 2020). Another belief is that Covid-19 is an illness that only the rich and elite suffer from. The reports of elected officials, corporate executives, celebrities, social media personalities, and media personalities who have tested positive for the virus or died from Coronavirus-related disease has made this place sound appealing (Campbell, 2020). Consequently, amid public knowledge of Covid-19 prevention initiatives, the lower classes of society saw government legislation as a ruse, raising the rate of group spread of the virus in Nigeria (Campbell and McCaslin, 2020).

Government agencies around the world are doing an exceptional job on social media, ensuring information is being communicated, rumours are being dispelled, and the health of their citizens remains protected.

1.3       OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

I.         To determine the impact religious traditions have on Covid-19’s social polarization.

II.      To determine the impact of government interventions on citizens’ social experience.

III.   To assess the impact of technological progress on covid-19 communications.

1.4       RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

I.         Religious traditions have little impact on Covid-19's social polarization in Nigeria.

II.      On Covid-19, government interventions had no effect on citizens' social experiences.

III.   The spread of Covid-19 communications to the general population is unaffected by technological progress.

1.5       SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The COVID19 pandemic poses a significant threat to our daily lives. In these days, it critical to ensure that research ethics and science honesty requirements are maintained rapidly evolving COVID19 pandemic research initiatives and publications on apan European level. The work focused on social  media practicesduring the pandemic.

1.6       SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The thesis looks at the government's use of social media to combat the coronavirus pandemic in Nigeria. It details the widespread misinformation about the virus's propagation, effects, and countermeasures. The study employs field sample methods to collect opinions and responses from the general population by analyzing Covid-19 disease signals. The study used a field sample design to accommodate the various points of view and responses of the respondents to the coronavirus pandemic messages they received. The respondents were free to express themselves.The researchers and respondents adhered strictly to the 2-meter social distancing and wearing of nose masks as directed by the WHO.

1.7       LIMITATION OF STUDY

There were a number of study drawbacks, the most significant of which being that the data were self-reported by self-selected subjects, and the lockout time limited the ability to collect more representative data. It was difficult to locate people who were interested in taking part in this research.

1.8       DEFINITION OF TERMS

social media: Social media are interactive technologies that allow the creation or sharing/exchange of information, ideas, career interests, and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks.

covid 19: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus.

REFERENCE

Campbell, J. (2020). Presidential Gatekeeper and Confidant, Abba Kyari, Dies From COVID-19. Council on

Foregin Relations, April 21. Available: https://www.cfr.org/blog/presidential-gatekeeper-and-confidant-abba-kyari-diescovid-19 Accessed June 30, 2020.

Campbell, J., McCaslin, J. (2020). How Nigeria Has Responded to COVID-19 So Far. COVID-19. Council on Foregin Relations, April 28. Available: https://www.cfr.org/blog/how-nigeria-has-responded-covid-19-so-far Accessed June 30, 2020.

Ismail, M., Imoughele, L. (2015). Macroeconomic Determinants of Economic Growth in Nigeria: A Cointegration Approach. International Journal of Academic Research in Economics and Management Sciences, 4(1), pp.34–46.http://doi.org/10.6007/IJAREMS/v4-i1/1485.

Locke, J. (1689). ‘The Second Treatise of Government’, in Two Treatises of Government, Peter Laslett (ed.), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 283–446

Odima, O. (2020).COVID-19 Pandemic and Corruption inNigeria. This Day, April 26.

Available:https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2020/04/26/covid-19-pandemic-and-corruption-in-nigeria/ Accessed June 30, 2020.

Shereen, M. A. , Khan, S. , Kazmi, A. , Bashir, N. , & Siddique, R. (2020). COVID-19 infection: Origin, transmission, and characteristics of human coronaviruses. Journal of Advanced Research , 24, 91–98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jare.2020.03.005  [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science], [Google Scholar]

Get this material NGN 5,000

Message Us on WhatsApp  »