IPC Boss charges Journalists to be Catalysts of Good Governance

By Vivian Iwu…

The Executive Director of the International Press Center (IPC ), Prof. Lanre Arogundade has charged Journalists to be catalysts of Good Governance.

He made this charge at a two – day Workshop, organized by the International Press Center (IPC), in collaboration with European Union (EU)-Support / Funding to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGIN) for over 40 Journalists, selected from South-East and South – South Zones of Nigeria, on the use of Freedom Of Information (FOI) and Facts – Check Tools.

The theme for the Workshop, which took place in Port Harcourt, River State, was: “Post Election Reporting: Using FOI Act & other Investigative Methodologies to report Democratic Governance & Electoral Accountability Issues”.

Arogundade explained that what informed his decision to hold the event was that Journalists and the media can hold the Government accountable to the people and do better to report in the Public interest.

“Ultimately it’s about the people. So, we are looking at Democratic Governance and Post Elections, particularly when it comes to promises made by elected Politicians, we believe that we need to use relevant Tools to follow up on those Policies and the Claims they are also making about what has been done or what has not been done.

“That’s why we talked about Freedom of Information Act and Fact – Checking.”
He explained, adding that IPC believes that Gender Issue is still very important and it is their obligation to advance the course of Women.

According to him, in Societies, including Nigeria, through consistent reporting and follow – up, Journalists have been able to make a difference in the lives of people, getting Government to do what it is supposed to do; build Roads and Health Centers in Communities, and expressed confidence that it is quite possible now, despite the challenges faced in the Profession.

He charged Participants of the Workshop on value of fact- checking their Reports in order to dispel suspicions and lower the spread of false information in the society.

However, another Resource Person at the Event, Mr. Edetaen Ojo, Executive Director, Media Rights Agenda, Lagos, who did Justice to the theme of the Event, “Post- Election Reporting: Using FOI Act & other Investigative Methodologies to report Democratic Governance and Electoral Accountability Issues”, charged Journalists to conduct investigative reporting more often, and to hold the Government and Government Officials, as well as Institutions, accountable.

Edetaen Ojo, a former Nigeria Guardian Editor, explained that Media Professionals are in the Information Business, and the whole point of Freedom of Information Act is to enable Citizens, including, Journalists to get Information that is reliable from Public Institutions and Officials because in the Digital age, there’s so much inaccurate Information floating around.

“So, it’s particularly important that we have an instrument that enables us to ask and get information and have the assurance that the information we are getting is accurate and reliable, then we should utilize that instrument.

“But unfortunately, our experience has been that over the last 12 years or so, the law has been in existence, Journalists have not made significant use of it, so, part of the objective here is to create greater awareness and sensitize Journalists about the existence of the Law and its value to them and also build capacity on how to use the law effectively.