Nigerian Journalists have again been cautioned against allowing the political class, traditional institution or spiritual leaders to use their platform or their medium to publish, broadcast or propagate any hate speech. The President of the Nigerian Union of Journalists ( NUJ) Alhaji AbdulWaheed Odusile gave the advice in Ilorin , the Kwara State capital, North Central Nigeria while answering questions from newsmen.
Alhaji Odusile said that as journalists, media practitioners should be careful and mindful of the implications of the stories that they publish or broadcast to the Nigerian society more so news items that would have negative implications but rather, follow the ethics of the profession.
According to him, it is not mandatory or under any obligation for any journalist to use stories that contains hate speech or speeches by anybody or group of people that could destabilize the country for their own personal benefits.
The NUJ boss said to this end, the leadership of the Union under his executive has introduced an online biometric registration of all members of the Union which will capture their details on the website as a means of curbing quackery and check those involved in hate speeches.
Alhaji Odusile disclosed that the registration exercise which is now ongoing and a continuous process would determine the exact number of media practitioners and warned that any journalists that is not captured would not be allowed to participate in any union activity and would not be allowed to vote or be voted for during Union elections .
He announced that as part of efforts to generate more revenue for the Union and to provide journalists with adequate training on the job, it has concluded arrangements with the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) to accredit courses under the International Institute of Journalism,(IIJ) programme in Abuja while the Union has also gone into partnership with developers to construct a four star hotel thereby making the Union to be financially independent.
Similarly, Alhaji Odusile announced that the Union has gone far in acquiring Television and Radio licenses to create employment for its unemployed members and demonstrate journalism at its best as well as discourage the practice of inducing journalists while discharging their constitutional responsibilities.
He lamented that the present economic situation in the country has affected the media industry and brought it to its knees as journalists are no longer paid as and when due but gave the assurance that the Union is working assiduously to address most of the challenges facing the profession stressing that under his executive, it has trained over two hundred of its members both within and outside the country.
The NUJ president who is also the President of the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) and Managing Editor of The Nation Newspapers appealed to Nigerian journalists to participate fully and be actively involved in the forthcoming International Press Institute (IPI) world congress which is slated for June this year in Abuja and be good ambassadors of the country and the journalism profession.