Kola Adepoju
4 July 2008
Abeokuta — Speaker of Ogun State House of Assembly, Hon. Tunji Egbetokun recently said that the legislature barred the state-owned radio and television stations from covering its activities because their editorial teams were yet to recover from the shock of the impeachment of the former Speaker, Hon. Titi Oseni.
Egbetokun alleged that both stations were still portraying the legislature in bad light, just as he claimed that the management of both stations had apologised to the House.
Speaking with newsmen in his office, Egbetokun who was flanked by fellow lawmakers said "the action (clampdown on the stations)was taken as a result of cumulative aggression on the state House of Assembly and as a result of cumulative offences bordering on inadequate reports by the two stations."
He stressed, "you can't divorce what happened (alleged distorted report) by the stations from the impeachment issue. People don't want to change.
They have been fixed, they don't want to shift from that pre-impeachment stereo-type position and we have to help them to shift".
Egbetokun said the clampdown on the stations was not spontaneous. "On two occasions, we lodged our complains thinking they will change but they are getting worse. We are of the view that it is better to take time and do things and enjoy it later than to continue to tolerate bad things"
Egbetokun however, informed that the management of the two stations had apologised in a written letter sent to the House, adding that in view of their apology the House would soon rescind its decision.
According to him, "There has been a written apology from the management of the stations, they have apologised and this shows they have accepted that they are faulty".
On whether, the House reported the matter to relevant professional body especially Nigeria Union of Journalist (NUJ), Egbetokun said "we are not compelled to do that. We know our responsibility as lawmakers."
But in a swift reaction, NUJ Zonal secretary, Zone G, Mr.Dimeji Kayode Adedeji described the action of the House as unconstitutional. Adedeji in a statement he signed and made available to Daily Champion said the House ought to have informed NUJ before sanctioning the stations.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Daily Champion. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
