By Bushrah Yusuf-Badmus
Alhaji Raheem Adedoyin, the member representing Africa on the Executive Board of the International Press Institute (IPI), has challenged the Nigerian media to take the lead in promoting good governance in the country.
Adedoyin gave the advice on Saturday in his virtual address at the inauguration of the Kwara chapter of the Association of Communication Scholars and Professionals of Nigeria (ACSPN).
The veteran journalist and former Kwara Commissioner for Information spoke on the theme, “Journalism, Communication and the Imperatives of Good Governance.”
He emphasised the critical role of the media in strengthening democracy and ensuring that public officials were accountable to the people.
According to him, the media remains the only institution specifically entrusted with the onerous responsibility of holding the government accountable for its actions and decisions.
He said the Nigerian Constitution recognised the importance of journalism to democracy and assigned the media a constitutional responsibility to promote accountability in governance.
“So critical is journalism to a thriving democracy that our grundnorm creates a pride of place for it.
“Chapter 2 Section 22 of the Nigerian Constitution, under Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy, gives the media a constitutional responsibility,” Adedoyin said.
He said the major challenge before Nigerian journalists was to strengthen the foundations of good governance through balanced and responsible reporting that promoted the principles of pluralist democracy.
He noted that although politicians and public officials might have tendencies to conceal wrongdoing and misconduct, journalists had a duty to investigate and expose such practices in the interest of the public.
“While it is true that politicians and public officials have innate predilections for cover up of crimes and misconduct, it is good journalism to strive to expose them in the interest of the public good,” he said.
He however cautioned that public-interest journalism should not be misconstrued as an attempt by the media to become an institutional opponent of the government.
Adedoyin stressed that objective reporting required fairness and professionalism.
According to him, the media must acknowledge and report government achievements where they exist, while equally exposing failures, policy shortcomings and misconduct whenever they occur.
“Where government performs well, our reportage must reflect this, but where government fails, journalism must also expose the failure of the state,” Adedoyin said.
He maintained that a free, fearless and professionally responsible press remained essential to sustaining democracy, protecting citizens’ interests and strengthening public confidence in governance.
The former commissioner also described communication as indispensable to good governance, noting that effective communication was necessary to connect government policies and programmes with the needs and expectations of the people.
“While governance is the art of translating public authority into public good, communication is the bridge that connects the two,” he said, highlighting the importance of dialogue between government and citizens.
Earlier, the Chairman of ACSPN in Kwara, Prof. Rasaq Adisa, commended Adedoyin for his presentation, describing it as a valuable contribution to discussions on journalism, communication and governance.
Adisa said the association would develop the presentation into a workshop where communication scholars and professionals would examine the issues raised and make recommendations for improving media practice and governance.
“You have set an agenda, and we shall turn it to a workshop where scholars will debate it then come up with a communique,” he said.(NAN)
Edited by Deji Abdulwahab
Comments