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NGE Condemns Attempts To Muzzle Media, Seeks Release Of Journalists In Detention
In commemoration of this year’s World Press Freedom Day, the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), has condemned, in strong terms, what it described as attempts muzzling the media, urging governments at all levels in Nigeria to value information as a public good and treat the conveyors of information as partners, instead of seeing them as enemies.
NGE, in a statement signed by its President, Mustapha Isah; and General Secretary, Mary Atolagbe; stated that “the media is a partner and critical stakeholder in the national project, having played a major role in the struggle for independence and enthronement of democracy, and cannot, therefore, suddenly transform to agents of destruction of the institutions it helped to build”.
NGE stated that information as a public good was the wheel that drives democracy and its attendant virtues, including openness, free speech and other forms of civil liberties, warning that the harassment of the media by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), the police, DSS and other state actors should stop.
“The Guild calls for a review of the National Broadcasting Code and all other media statutes, to bring them in tune with democracy and the promotion of free speech. The Body of Editors urges the Nigerian government to, at all times, strive to protect the media. It is only then that ‘Information as a Public Good’ would become relevant. Stop the detention, impunity, harassment and killing of journalists. Our product (Information) is a public good,” NGE said.
The Guild further aligns with the UN and other world bodies in calling for the release of all journalists in detention on the ground that Nigeria, and indeed the world, needs a free press to promote democracy, effectively report the pandemic and other issues threatening human existence, including insecurity while it commended the federal and state governments as well as all relevant health institutions and personnel for their spirited efforts at containing the Covid-19 pandemic.
NGE further celebrated journalists across the world for keeping faith with the tenets of the profession despite numerous challenges, especially journalists in the frontline of Covid-19 pandemic coverage as well as those charged with the responsibility of reporting crime and security, at a time when the nation is struggling to contain the scourge of insecurity.
Further, the Guild urged media owners, the private sector and the government, to provide special protection for journalists, as most of them are often neglected and exposed to sundry challenge, that not only impair their ability to discharge their duties, but also imperil their lives, culminating, in some cases, to untimely deaths.
The World Press Freedom Day was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in December, 1993, following the recommendation of UNESCO’s General Conference and it was inaugurated to act as a reminder to governments, of the need to respect their commitment to press freedom while it also places a responsibility on media professionals to reflect on and adhere to the principles of best practices that promote professionalism, ethical reporting and public-spirited advocacy.
The theme for this year’s World Press Freedom Day is “Information as a Public Good,” and it highlights the necessity of governments, state actors and the private sector to recognize the value of information as a critical element in leadership and service delivery.
It specifically places a great deal of responsibility on governments across the world to accord respect to journalists, the conveyors and disseminators of information, as partners in development, and not as enemies of the state.
According to NGE, journalists across the world face grave challenges and dangers in the discharge of their duties.
“Some have paid the supreme price while others have been harassed and jailed for doing their lawful duty. This is because most governments still perceive journalists as intruders into the public space. The International Federation of Journalists, the largest global body of journalists from over 140 countries says 66 journalists were murdered in 2020. More than 1,000 journalists have died from Covid-19 in 73 countries since the start of the pandemic.
“The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), reports that 274 journalists were jailed in 2020 for doing their job of treating information as a public good. In Nigeria, several journalists have suffered harassment, some detained arbitrarily while some were murdered in cold blood by unknown assailants. In 2020, alone, no fewer than 60 journalists in Nigeria faced life and career-threatening challenges in the form of intimidation, arrest and detention.
“Three journalists were killed within the same period, one by security forces during a protest in Abuja and two by unknown gunmen in Adamawa and Nasarawa states. Aside from attacks on journalists, their offices were not spared. Several media outlets were attacked and torched by an irate mob during the #EndSARS protests, with four media outlets fined for their coverage of the protests while others were fined for airing dissenting opinions,” NGE reiterated.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.