The Nigerian media has been charged to always be ready to speak the truth to power for the country’s democracy to progress particularly at the state level.
The message was contained in a press statement by the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Delta State, Olorogun. Kenneth Gbagi where he tasked journalists to always hold leaders at various levels accountable.
The statement signed on his behalf by his chief press secretary, Orusi Kenneth, read: “Our accountability journalism takes a deep dive into public procurement, corruption, human rights, criminal justice, environment, health, education, and security.
“Practicing accountability journalism demands a lot of patience, time and resources. This underscores why journalists who subscribe to this brand of journalism must be fearless, brutal and above all, careful with their facts; the terrain does not forgive the simplest of errors or ignorance.”
Gbagi said in addition to promoting accountability, the media must keep the people fully informed at all times.
“The Nigerian media, through their reportage, must not only fulfil their natural calling of holding leaders accountable but must also strive to effectively inform, educate and mobilize the citizens for national progress and development,” the former minister of state for education argued.
He bemoaned some media contents which exhibit known biases of the writer through fabrication of unconfirmed, untrue and misrepresentation of facts in the news reportage.
He said collaboration in accountability journalism is powerful for wider penetration and reach, “Media organisations carrying accountability reports must learn to delve into the world of collaboration with other media outlets who share the passion of investigative journalism.
“For effective and deeper penetration, news outlets must adopt multiple means of disseminating information in view of the changing pattern of media consumption.
“Stories should be presented in a multimedia format to allow readers to make choices as to how they want to engage with media content; Moreso, because of the idea that audio-visuals summarize and illustrate news stories for easy understanding among readers.
