In a statement released on Saturday in Kano, the Independent National Electoral Commission, or INEC, urged journalists to report the upcoming general elections in Nigeria with objectivity and fairness.
The next general elections will be held in February 2023, as announced by the Nigerian electoral umpire in a previous notice.
A one-day sensitization workshop was held in Kano by the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists, and Suleiman Alkali, the Kano Head of INEC Legal Services, spoke at the event. He emphasised that the media plays a crucial part in the stability and success of elections.
“INEC expect from the press nothing short of objectively, unbiased and sincere reporting of the next General elections in Nigeria because all the competing parties are equal before us”.
Alkali explained that the position and recognition of Nigeria media as the fourth estate of the realm made its role critical to the survival or otherwise of a nation-state.”
He said, “The case of Rwanda genocide is a clear reminder of how irresponsible press can make or mar a country’s stability, and in a brazen violation of ethics, one million life was lost.”
The INEC top official cautioned that for “Nigeria to continue to be safe and peaceful, ethical standards must be embraced in our reportage and programmes”, adding that “this remains a vital option to reposition the media in its rightful place as partners in progress.”
In a speech at the ceremony, the State Commissioner for Information, Mallam Muhammad Garba, who was represented by the State NUJ Chairman, Abbas Ibrahim said “the Workshop for the Female Journalists was timely in the light of political activities as Nigeria’s journey towards its 2023 General elections.”
He called on participants to maximize the lessons and deployed the same in the discharge of their duties.