From Olanrewaju Lawal, Birnin Kebbi
Kebbi State Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu has urged journalists and Information officers in Nigeria to refrain from any act, capable of endangering the national unity.
Governor Bagudu stated this while addressing information officers at a one day workshop organised by the Kebbi State Ministry of Information and Culture, on the theme: “Contemporary methodology of news gathering and reporting”.
The governor, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Umar Babale Yauri, called ‘on all members of the press individually and collectively at National and State levels to put all hands on deck in reporting objectively, the developmental objective of the present administration towards solving the myriad of our State and National problems.
‘As newsmen, your position in the society is prime,therefore, must refrain from any act capable of endangering national unity,’ he stated.
The governor explained that the in-house capacity building was expected to sensitise and sharpen your practice as well as update them on ethics of the journalism,new methodology of information dissemination, globally and locally in the state.
‘At the end of the training, it is expected that participants, apart from understanding the pedagogy ways of educating, informing and entertaining the people of Kebbi State, they should also be able to appreciate the impact of their journalistic, know how on reporting development, they should also learn and avoid libel,character defamation and slander against individual, as well as complement Government in fostering societal development, rathan than unwarranted criticism and to see themselves as partners in the state architecture and development,’ he stated.
Awards were presented to the best feature and news writers among the Information Officers of the State Ministry of Information and Culture.