Press Release (Posted: March 31, 2010)
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By Aniekan Umanah
The Governor made the call in a keynote address at a one-day conference on the Challenges Facing a Democratizing Nation organized by the Lagos State Council of the Nigerian Union of Journalist. The Governor who was represented by the Commissioner for Information and Social Re-orientation, Mr Aniekan Umanah said the media had paid a great prize for democracy and must not allow itself to be used to derail it. According to Governor Akpabio, "I want to urge the media to remain very vigilant and not lent your pages and airwaves to agents of destabilization. Journalists should therefore not destroy this democracy we all fought for. They should not lend themselves to be used by unpatriotic elements to wage private battles and write and promote malicious and dishonest petitions. "Let the media practice the social responsibility theory of the press, and remain noble Praetorian Guards of our democracy. Let the media be the conscience of our nation and help to heal all our open wounds," he said. Governor Akpabio listed the challenges facing Nigeria’s democratization to include poverty, disunity, inadequate power supply, the Niger Delta, free and fair election among others and urged the media to use the opportunity of the conference to proffer solutions to these challenges. According to Governor Akpabio, "there is consensus among Nigerians is that in the next election our votes must count which brings us to the issue of free and fair elections. This is a challenge not just to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) but to all Nigerians: the media, politicians, and the civil society organizations," he said The Governor said he has given meaning to democracy in his state by laying a solid foundation for the industrial growth of the state through massive infrastructural development across the state. "In less than three years we have built 170 roads, three fly over bridges, a 3.7 km underground flood control project, the first of its kind in this clime; we have constructed and dualized state and federal roads; we have built and completed an ultra-modern Governor’s lodge in a record time of 14 months; we have connected 850 rural communities to the national grid, in a campaign to ensure no community is in darkness in 2011; We have delivered CAT 2 International Airport with a 3.6 km runway expandable to 4.5 and an MRO facility," he said. The event also featured a goodwill message from the Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola who urged the media to continue to play its role as the watchdog of the society. Among the key personalities who attended the event were the National President of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) Mallam Mohammed Garba and Professor Femi Famorokun of the political Science department of the University of Lagos. |
The Akwa Ibom State Governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio has called on the Nigerian media to be vigilant and guard against any conduct that may derail Nigeria’s nascent democracy.
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