by Ajibola Emmanuel
The 2019 general election is in 33 days, and it will be a deciding moment for Nigeria, as weeks of preparation for the candidates culminate in hours of waiting and decision making. For there to be free and fair elections, a number of actors have roles to play; from media, security, to party agents and electoral officials. It is the perfect execution of these roles that ensure elections are free and fair.
The media, regarded as the fourth estate of the realm, has been mired in fake news controversies, which have come with severe consequences such as disconnect with the people, and distrust. With the coming elections, an opportunity presents itself for the Nigerian media to reshape itself and stay committed to the values of journalism.
In line with this, Office of the Citizen, an initiative that highlights societal issues from the perspective of the people, discussed the role of the media in the 2019 elections on Nigerian Info on 99.3FM. The program had in attendance Mr. Edwin Okolo, the head of content for RED.
Mr. Edwin noted the vital role of the media in the forthcoming election; one of fair reporting and balance. While being critical of the need to address fake news, he urged Nigerians to take ownership of the news they consume, and advocated for a subscription model for news consumption. This subscription model, he opined, would ensure Nigerians have access to trusted contents from reliable media organizations and help eliminate the threat of fake news.
Furthermore, Mr. Edwin commended the media’s role in the reporting of the Osun election, which was marred by thuggery and vote buying. The conversation tilted towards politics and the need to combat political thuggery, and in line with this, he called for the examination of Nigeria’s system which facilitated political thuggery, and truancy. According to him, for political thuggery to be a thing of the past; then poverty, unemployment and illiteracy must be addressed, as they are the foundation upon which political thuggery rests.
Office of the Citizen ended with Mr. Edwin advising Nigerians to vote in the forthcoming elections, and not wasting their votes.
22 Comments
I have been browsing on-line more than 3 hours these days,
but I by no means discovered any attention-grabbing article like yours.
It is lovely price enough for me. In my opinion, if all site owners
and bloggers made just right content material
as you did, the web will likely be a lot more helpful than ever before.
Howdy! I could have sworn I’ve been to this blog before but
after reading through some of the post I realized it’s new
to me. Anyways, I’m definitely glad I found it and I’ll be book-marking and checking back
frequently!
I got this site from my friend who told me on the topic of this website and
now this time I am visiting this website and reading very
informative articles or reviews here.
I love what you guys tend to be up too. This sort of clever work
and reporting! Keep up the excellent works guys I’ve included you guys to our blogroll.
My partner and I stumbled over here coming from a different web page and thought
I might check things out. I like what I see so i am just following you.
Look forward to checking out your web page yet again.
What’s Happening i am new to this, I stumbled upon this I have
discovered It positively useful and it has helped me out loads.
I am hoping to give a contribution & help different users like its helped me.
Great job.
496191 854787Should tow line this caravan together with van trailer home your entire family rapidly get exposed to the issues along with reversing create tight placement. awnings 692229
35546 29733Hello! Ive been following your blog for a although now and lastly got the courage to go ahead and give you a shout out from Kingwood Texas! Just wanted to mention maintain up the good function! 579485
748888 830591As I web-site possessor I believe the content material matter here is rattling great , appreciate it for your efforts. You ought to keep it up forever! Very best of luck. 248296
767553 373000Respect to internet site author , some excellent selective info . 215970
Hi friends, its impressive piece of writing on the topic
of teachingand entirely defined, keep it up all the time.
983422 548036Hello! I just would wish to offer a huge thumbs up for that great info youve here during this post. I will be returning to your website to get much more soon. 920964
Hi there to all, the contents present at this web page
are in fact amazing for people experience, well, keep up the good work fellows.
57577 519152You completed various very good points there. I did a search on the theme and located the majority of folks will consent along with your blog. 441490
979036 945808Wohh exactly what I was searching for, appreciate it for posting . 358261
327047 500728Pay a visit to our website for info about securities based lending and a lot more. There is information about stock and equity loans as effectively as application forms. 620049
Can you tell us more about this? I’d want to find out more details.
Yesterday, while I was at work, my sister stole my iPad and tested to see if it can survive a 25 foot drop,
just so she can be a youtube sensation. My apple
ipad is now broken and she has 83 views.
I know this is entirely off topic but I had to share it with
someone!
I’m not sure exactly why but this weblog is loading very slow for me.
Is anyone else having this issue or is it a problem on my end?
I’ll check back later and see if the problem still exists.
568279 471731Very good publish, thanks a good deal for sharing. Do you happen to have an RSS feed I can subscribe to? 79368
424507 595270Thank you for this. Thats all I can say. You most certainly have produced this into something thats eye opening and essential. You clearly know so considerably about the topic, youve covered so several bases. Excellent stuff from this part with the internet. 75158
137042 659324I agree with most of your points, but several need to be discussed further, I will hold a small speak with my partners and maybe I will look for you some suggestion soon. 93014