The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and the Diaspora, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has advised media men in Nigeria to embark more on investigative journalism in order to be fair to all concerned.
Dabiri-Erewa gave the advice in Abuja in a keynote address as the Special Guest of Honour during the 10th annual Ramadan lecture of the Muslim Media Practitioners of Nigeria.
The SSA decried the high rate at which most journalists publish nowadays without cross checking their facts, thus dishing out falsehood to the public.
She said the colossal damage done to the subject matter with such un-investigated stories or news items would be too much to bear when compared with the retraction of such stories, which had been used in the media.
The journalist-cum politician cited a personal experience where an article was published in her name when in actual fact she knew nothing about it.
She said: “Whether the story is positive or negative, the impact is collosal on the subject matter as there is no amount of damage control that can reverse the negative effects of such stories.”
Corroborating what earlier guest speakers at the occasion had said, the one-time renowned broadcaster with the NTA said that such unverified stories were ungodly and condemnable.
Dabiri-Erewa advised media practitioners, especially those of them who are Muslims, to fear Allah in their reportage of events and make judicious use of the Freedom of Information Act, which she said was one of her propositions while in the House of Representatives.
Dabiri-Erewa, who stressed that Islam abhors terrorism at all times, urged Muslims to take the issue of education seriously, saying that ignorance of the religion was the major cause of insurgency in the country.
She equally urged Muslim media men and Nigerians in general to speak against corruption and support President Muhammadu Buhari’s fight against the cankerworm.
She said: “I urge you to use Freedom of Information Act to stop corruption in the country and use it to develop the country.
“We should all speak against corruption.”
While commending the initiatives of the MMPN in spotlighting major issues in the country to the front burner, Dabiri–Erewa promised to support the cause of the association.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Association, Alhaji Abdur-Rahman Balogun, said the choice of the topic was to see how Muslim media men would work for the peace, unity and prosperity of the country.
The trio of Prof. Ishaq Akintola of the Lagos State University; Hajia Aisha Umar-Yusuf, Editor, Muslim Worldview; and Cemal Yigit from Ufuk Foundation, spoke on the theme: “Peace as a Catalyst for Development: The Media Challenge.”
