Tashikalmah Hallah and Nasidi A. Yahaya
17 November 2009
Abuja — Media chiefs led by the former Lagos State governor and veteran journalist Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande yesterday insisted on the passage of the Freedom of Information Bill (FOI), which they said was the only way to achieve sustainable democracy.
The media chiefs that included Prince Tony Momoh, Gbenga Adefaye, Bayo Atoyebi, Professor Ralph Akinfeleye, Garba Mohammed and former NAN Managing Director, Malam Wada Maida spoke at a public hearing on a bill that seeks to repeal the Nigerian Press Council Act and in its place establish the Nigerian Press and Practice of Journalism Council.
Alhaji Jakande urged the MPs to consider freedom of press as a way to encourage their work, saying journalism has never been a problem to the country.
He said: "The press has never been a problem or obstacle to the growth of this country. In fact we can lay claim that we are promoters of the country because we were part of those that championed for independence of the country."
In his presentation Prince Tony Momoh called for speedy passage of the bill as it affects freedom of press, pointing out that the MPs have great role to play in ensuring press freedom.
He added: "From a cursory reading of the 12 parts into which the bill is divided, it is suggested that what is most urgently needed at this stage is material to illuminate what had been done in the past in respect of monitoring the monitor of government. The monitor of government is the press".
Prince Momoh also supported part of the bill which seeks to regulate the practice of journalists, saying it will help flush out quacks from the profession.
But Professor Ralph Akinfeleye of the Department of Mass Communication University of Lagos lamented the proliferation of training institutions of Mass Communication and also decried the appointment of non core media men as editors.
For journalism to be professional, Professor Akinfeleye opined that an editor must first be a reporter before he is appointed and that the 68 Mass Communication training institutions must be regulated.
Dr Tony Iredia, former Director General of the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) said the President should hand over granting of television and radio licenses to National Broadcasting Commission (NBC).
According to him, it will check arbitrariness. Under the current Act he said NBC has the power to revoke television and radio licenses but does not have the power to grant license.
The chairman of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Mallam Garba Mohammed called for consideration of salary review of journalists.
He said: "there should be a benchmark on salary structure for journalists. I want to also add that life insurance for journalists would never be compromised considering the way they are being killed every day".
He called for the establishment of the press practice council, pointing out that its chairman should be seasoned journalist with at least 20 years experience.
Also speaking, President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Gbenga Adefaye said involvement of media managers is very important in the realisation of press council, saying the bill is seemingly obsessed to private media managers.
The Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Doro Akunyili said repealing the act and replacing it with appropriate bill will remove bottlenecks faced by journalists in the course of discharging their work.
A six-member committee was set up to incorporate the views of stakeholders in the proposed amendment to the Nigeria Press Council Act and report back within two weeks.
The Vice Chairman of the committee, Alhaji Khabeeb Mustapha, said Prince Tony Momoh, would head the committee.
The members will come from the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), the Nigeria Press Council (NPC) and the Ministry of Information and Communications.
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