News
Media practitioners tasked on holding government to account
Stephen Olufemi Oni, Ilorin
Media houses and practitioners in Nigeria have been charged to be more strategic in the discharge of their roles as the Fourth Estimate of the Realm, and ensure that they continue to hold the government to account.
The Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the Kwara State Governor, Rafiu Ajakaye, said this in Ilorin on Wednesday evening at the 2023 Press Week of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Kwara Council.
Ajakaye’s address as the Keynote Speaker was themed, “Role of the Media in Nigeria Soft Power Conundrum”.
According to the CPS, “all of us (media) should take ownership of the Nigerian brand”, saying the country’s population is surging every day, lamenting that there are limited resources to get everything done, especially human capital and foreign investments in the economy.
He said: “But we cannot attract the right investments and human capital if we do not project Nigeria as safe and right for all. If all we do is to record the vilest videos of unsavoury development and splash same on the internet or make it the banner headline that everyone sees across the world, we will be telling the world that our country is not safe.
“We can tell ourselves about our problems and work together to solve them or make scapegoats of the culprits. What we should stop doing is to put constant spotlight on the downsides of our society. No other nation does that.”
Ajakaye added: “Deaths linked to violent crimes in Nigeria stood at 15,245 in 2022. In 2021, deaths associated with gun violence alone in the United States stood at 48,830, a 23% rise since 2019. But while Nigeria is often portrayed as a scary place to be, the United States is seen as a paradise where all is well 24/7.
“The difference is in the narratives that come with these statistics. While the US media establishments are quick to explain away the violence in their own country, sometimes calling it the acts of lone wolves or depression, the narrative here is often that this is happening because this is a failed system, ran aground by failed and corrupt governments.
“The image we carve for our country is what sticks to it. If we call it a failed state because of its imperfections and crises of nation building, which are hardly exclusive to it, the result we get is what we call it.
“All of the nations we call the bastion of democracy or glamorise with every positives have or have had their own failings or down moments, perhaps worse than ours, which they paper over with nice narratives and excuses in their pursuits of national branding”, he noted.
Ajakaye said he was “neither asking the media to abandon its noble roles of being the watchdog of our society nor saying it should renege its duty as the fourth estate of the realm.
“But I am asking that we strike a deliberate balance between being journalists who report developments and being patriotic citizens and stakeholders who, along with our generations unborn, are also affected by whatever happens to Nigeria.
“If many cable networks in the ‘democratic’ west deliberately do not convey to the international audience everything that goes wrong in their society or frame such in manners that do not damage their national brand, I appeal that we also de-emphasise negative profiling of our country. I ask that we filter out to the global audience every little downsides of our society.”
The CPS called on all media stakeholders to “endeavour to give ourselves and our country good names at all times. We owe it a duty and responsibility to ourselves and our children to stand by this country that has given us so much”, he submitted.
In his address, the Chairman of the Correspondent’s Chapel, Mallam AbdulHakeem Garba, said despite their critical roles, journalists still remain an endangered species.
“We fight for the rights of others while we find ourselves at a loss when it’s time to fight for the rights of journalists”, he noted.
He called on the NUJ to get its acts together on the issue of non payment of salaries and benefits by a good number of media houses, saying the unsavoury situation still abounds.
End
The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to maintain the status quo in a dispute over the party’s candidates emerging from the Benue State APC primaries for the 2027 general election.
The order was made on Thursday by Justice Inyang Ekwo during proceedings in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1429/2026, filed by Engr. Sesugh Akaagba and other aggrieved APC candidates from Benue State against the APC and INEC.
The plaintiffs had, through an ex parte motion filed on July 5, 2026, sought six interim reliefs, including an order restraining the APC from substituting its validly nominated candidates in Benue State through its June 29, 2026 correspondence, or any subsequent communication, to INEC, pending determination of the substantive suit.
They also sought an order compelling the APC to immediately transmit to INEC the names of candidates validly nominated during the primaries monitored by the electoral commission.
When the matter first came up on July 8, 2026, the court declined to grant the interim application immediately, directing both APC and INEC to appear and respond before any decision was taken. The matter was adjourned to July 16.
At Thursday’s proceedings, counsel representing the APC and INEC were present in court, while the plaintiffs were represented by Mohammed Ndarani, SAN, alongside his legal team.
In his ruling, Justice Ekwo held that since issues had been joined by the parties particularly with INEC now before the court, the defendants were required by law to preserve the subject matter of the litigation pending determination of the substantive suit.
When counsel to the plaintiffs urged the court to caution APC and INEC against taking any further action that could affect the disputed list of candidates, the judge responded that it was “not a matter of advice but of law,” stressing that the defendants were bound to maintain the status quo.
The court consequently restrained APC and INEC from taking any action capable of altering the disputed list of candidates pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.
The defendants did not object to the restraining order.
At the commencement of proceedings, the court noted that all parties had voluntarily submitted to its jurisdiction by duly filing and exchanging their respective processes.
It held that there was no procedural or jurisdictional impediment to the expeditious determination of the substantive action, and directed that the matter be heard without further delay.
In furtherance of the objective of preserving the res and safeguarding the efficacy of the judicial process, the court ordered all parties to maintain the status quo pending the hearing and final determination of the substantive suit, restraining any act or omission capable of prejudicing the rights of the parties or rendering the proceedings nugatory.
The court further directed that INEC be served forthwith with the originating and all consequential processes.
The effect of the subsisting order is that INEC is restrained from tampering with the existing list of candidates pending final determination of the suit, and from receiving, recognising, or acting upon any purported substituted list of National Assembly candidates from Benue State submitted by the APC.
The matter was adjourned to July 21, 2026, for hearing of the substantive suit.
Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and former First Lady Patience Ibifaka Jonathan recently celebrated a significant family milestone as they attended the graduation ceremony of their son, Ariara Goodluck Jonathan, at Manchester Metropolitan University in the United Kingdom.
The proud parents joined family members and well-wishers to witness Ariara receive his degree, marking the successful completion of his academic programme. The occasion was filled with joy as the Jonathan family commemorated the achievement, highlighting the importance they place on education and personal development.
The graduation ceremony attracted warm congratulatory messages from friends, associates, and admirers, who wished the graduate continued success in his future endeavours.
The Following names joined the political family of Sen. Dr. George Akume today after leaving the sinking Alia ship .
Under the leadership of Barr. Emmanuel Jime .
The are ;
Chief Nelson Alapa
Douglas pepe SAN senatorial Aspirant zone A,
Engr Peter Ashiekaa
QS Clement Beetseh
Former commissioners
Joy Luga
Ann itodo
Barr martins Shaagee
Miss Dorcas
Prof Usar Joseh
Prof Cephas Tushima
Chief Patrick Idoko
Hon Patience Akor
Hon Fred Idoko
Hon Lawrence Ekpo Onoja Jnr
Hon Andrew Abah
Hon Agbo Innocent Ikwumonu
Hon Simon Omachoko
Hon David Egboja
Dr John Garba
Among together,
Kwara: Security Team Kills Two Bandits, Rescues Two Kidnap Victims
Kwara: Police Launch Investigations Into Killing Of Farmer On Farmland
Kwara: Joint Security Team Arrests Alleged Cultist, Recovers Firearm
-
Uncategorized5 years agoFG, states urged to harness flooding for ranching, others with technology – Agbaje
-
Headlines10 years agoBreaking: EFCC seals Borno House of Assembly, as Hon members take to their heels
-
News12 years agoNigeria Security Operatives Stage Manhunt For Homosexual Perpetrator
-
News9 years agoHow 21-year-old Girl fled community over accusation of lesbianism
-
News10 years agoYobe Gov Moves Against Deputy
-
Opinion7 years ago7 signs she has friend zoned you
-
Technology5 years ago
Online job placement company headhunts women
-
Headlines10 years agoBorno Dep Gov Abducts Another Church Leader