Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and
the Governor of Delta State, Senator Dr Ifeanyi Okowa (15/10/18) urged the media to retain its credibility as an unbiased umpire.
They made the call at the 14th edition
of All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC) holding in Asaba, Delta
State.
According to Prof. Osinbajo,
“the journalism profession has always been at a greater risk than other
professions; freedom of expression has always given people the right to use any
information, but, there was some actions by some
regulatory parliaments that created obstacles for all newcomers except for
renowned professionals and this created some restrictions; but
today, all that is gone and who is to blame for the death of this profession?”
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| From left; Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo; Delta State Governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa and Deputy Governor of Akwa-Ibom State, Moses Frank Ekpo, during the 14th Conference of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, held in Asaba. |
“The first culprit is technology;
its inheritable evil also has the capacity for overwhelming good as we need
technology in every aspect of our livelihood; the second and most important
culprit is the professional himself,” he said, observing, “over
time, we have lost the trust of the public, because, what do people
want? People want the truth, objectivity - they want clear analysis
of events.”
He continued, “there was a time
when someone would say, ‘I read it in the Times’ because, whatever was written
then was absolutely meant to be the truth but today, skeptics will ask you
"who sponsored this story?’ Most of the investigative reports are reported
by the social media such as blogs, television channels and so forth; The Guild,
as we all agree, is a society of gate-keepers to whom belongs the
responsibility of defining the efforts, the norms, the ethics of this
profession; upon you is also the burden of setting the acceptable rules, the
conventions and practices of the profession; this gathering is made
greater in a society where corruption is the order of the day and where there
is constant fight, and the burden of The Guild is to ensure that your rules and
regulations are enforced and kept as it is a self-regulatory profession.”
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| Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (right) and Delta State Governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, during the 14th Conference of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, held in Asaba. |
Governor Okowa had in an
address, observed that the independence, objectivity and credibility of the
media is being undermined by media practitioners engaging in public relations
consultancy services to politicians, dearth of investigative journalism and
inadequate remuneration for journalists in their places of work.
“Media practitioners who are
known to be engaged as Public Relations Consultants to politicians/ public
office holders compromises the editorial independence, fairness and objectivity
of the press; by the time a professional journalist goes on social media to be
advocating for or defending a particular candidate/public figure, he cannot be
trusted to report fairly and impartially on matters concerning that
person; this is a clear and present danger to the journalism
profession and one that this body should strive to contain as quickly as
possible, especially as we approach the 2019 general elections,” the governor
said, adding, “I must point out that there is still too much hear-say
reporting; too often, reporters base their stories on what people say or allege
without bothering to crosscheck the facts; as a result, politicians/political
office holders are forced to defend themselves against sometimes very wild,
outlandish allegations; reputations have been ruined, careers destroyed and
families torn apart because of such reporting.”
Governor Okowa who described the
Nigerian press as one of the freest in the world with a rich, enviable history
of crusading against corruption, bad governance and despotic leadership, noted
that “a situation where a reporter is unsure of his next pay cheque does not
augur well for the growth of the profession as it exposes them to undue
influences from politicians and public office holders; survival is a basic
instinct of man and a person whose survival is threatened could care less about
integrity and fairness.”
He asserted, “we need our
journalists to report the truth no matter whose ox is gored but they cannot do
that with boldness, confidence and assurance if their welfare is in jeopardy. “
Governor Okowa stated that the
theme for the conference, ‘Credible Elections, Sustainable Democracy and the
Role of the Media,’ was “relevant at this point in time, especially in the
light of the recently concluded party primaries; indeed, the choice of the
theme aptly reflects the concern of all Nigerians for a free, fair, transparent
and credible 2019 elections for sustainable democracy.”
“Democracy requires the exercise
of political power to promote the public good or welfare of the people,
accountability and transparency in governance and the existence of viable
opposition parties for it to be sustainable,” he observed, disclosing, “one of
the biggest steps we took towards ensuring sustainable democracy in Nigeria was
when in 2015 the ruling PDP at the federal level conducted an election, lost
and handed over to the opposition APC; this was a scenario previously thought
impossible but when that happened, to the chagrin of critics and naysayers, a
solid foundation was laid for sustainable democracy in Nigeria. “
He emphasized, “the current
APC-led Federal Government must build on this foundation and resist the
temptation to repress the opposition and militarise the electoral process; to
do otherwise would have terrible repercussions on this democracy that many have
fought and died for.”
Earlier, the chairman of the
occasion, Mr Tonie Iredia had in a welcome speech, urged the media to make
everyone accountable for what he does, stating, “as journalists, we should
stand in the forefront and do what the journalists are supposed to do – setting
the agenda, we should engage in developmental journalism.”
President, Nigerian Guild of
Editors, Mrs Funke Egbemode welcomed participants stating that all Nigerians
must be actively involved in making the right choice about those who will lead
the country in 2019.
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