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Nigeria: NUJ to Re-Present Bill to N/Assembly
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Daily Champion (Lagos)
3 March 2008
Posted to the web 3 March 2008
Dele Ogunyemi
Ibadan
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) is to re-present the Journalism Enhancement Bill to the National Assembly for reconsideration, the union President, Mr. Ndagene Akwu has said. He said this in an address to the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) held at Ibadan last Saturday.
The NUJ President's remarks came up just as the Minister of Environment, Housing and Urban Development, Mrs. Halima Tayo Alao raised an alarm over the looming climate change and global warming saying "it is a real problem for Nigeria."
The minister, who was the chairman at the opening ceremony of the NAWOJ NEC meeting said that "floods are now more rampant in both coastal and inland areas, while the Lake Chad area and the other Northern states are under an increased threat of desertification."
But the NUJ President, who recalled that the Journalism Enhancement Bill was thrown out by the last Assembly because most of the stakeholders complained that they were not properly consulted, said that if the bill was signed into law, "it would tremendously provide the necessary professional shelter and ensure welfare of journalists in Nigeria."
According to Akwu, the union was already aware of some media houses which specialise in getting cheap labour from journalists.
While maintaining that the NUJ is seriously frowning at such a dehumanising development, Akwu said that the central working committee of the union had taken appropriate measures to discourage such labour and underpayment.
To forestall the problems inherent in climate change and global warming, Mrs. Alao enjoined Nigerians to observe the building code and build safe houses, especially in the built environment to put an end to the ugly phenomenon of collapsed buildings in the country.
She said media professionals in Nigeria, particularly NAWOJ members should step up efforts in informing Nigerians of the various strides in waste management, the establishment of National Environmental Standards Regulation and Enforcement Agency (NESREA), the development of policy on erosion, flood, forestry and desertification control made by the Federal Government.
"I urge you to integrate behavioural change communication into your reportorial duties, commentaries and analyses especially in personal and public hygiene," the minister stated just as she enjoined members of NAWOJ to ensure that they meet the very high expectations of Nigerians in the area of information, education and entertainment.
Oyo State governor, Otunba Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala, in his keynote address to the forum, described as very timely the NEC meeting of NAWOJ especially at a time like this when all hands must be on deck to see to the survival of our fledgling democracy where everybody has a stake.
The governor who was represented by the state Commissioner for Information, Mrs. Risikat Alabi, stressed the importance of national unity and corporate existence, saying these are the main roles of the media, the watchdog of the society, and which should also ensure unbiased reporting and editorial comments on either individual or corporate bodies including government at all levels.
Also addressing the gathering, a member of the National Assembly and the Senate Committee Chairman on Environment and Ecology, Senator Grace Folasade Bent, urged women journalists to "start canvassing for gender parity by promoting mass participation of women in politics." According to her, experiences in the past eight years of the nation's democratic experiment have shown that women could be great performers, if allowed to hold even sensitive political offices.
She then stated that as the process of constitution review would soon start in Nigeria, everyone should "rally forces in ensuring that the proposed amendment of the constitution must accord a pride of place for women in the Nigeria's grand norm."
The NAWOJ NEC meeting which drew representatives from all states of the Federation was graced by representatives of the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN) and that of the Governor of Oyo State, Otunba Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala and other eminent personalities.
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Earlier in a welcome address, the National Chairman of NAWOJ, Alhaja Fatima Abdulkareem stressed the determination of her executive to elevate the status of Nigerian women journalists and make them more responsive and responsible in the wake of the unfolding socio-economic advancement in the country.
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