By Lukman Olabiyi
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu has cautioned the Nigerian politicians and public office holders on the issue unduly stifling of the press
The governor who was the Special Guest of Honour at the Nigerian Guild of Editors Workshop, themed: “Journalist and Digitalisation: the imperative of Good Corporate Governance.”, held in Lagos , urged journalist to always be professional in doing their job.
Sanwo-Olu appealed to the journalists and government officials to always considered interest of the general public first before their personal interest.
While declaring the workshop open , the governor said ensuring good corporate governance and self-regulating the digital space would completely eradicate false and fake news.
He assured the guild of editors that his administration will continue to promote Press Freedom and good corporate governance as well as providing enabling environment for journalists in the state, urged media practitioners to always regulate their activities in the digital space.
His words: “I stand with you guys (media practitioners) in solidarity; to say that, indeed, your profession is not just a noble one, but is the one that gives the general public an independent assessment; holding our governance and government accountable at all times. And so, we need to be very careful as politicians and public officers that we do not gag this profession (media). We do not unduly stifle free press and media.
“I want to say to you that our government understands and appreciates that press freedom is the way in which we can hold government accountable. But it is also the responsibility of all of us here to ensure that that thin line; we also can self-regulate ourselves. And that is why I cannot agree less with the President of the NGE that says that the body of the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation should not only be independent, it should be equipped with men of impeccable character and integrity that can indeed work like the Oxfam of this world and indeed sanction erring people butt give freedom for all of you to do your work and do it very well.”
Governor Sanwo-Olu also implored media practitioners to work toward eradicating fake news completely, by ensuring that they don’t rush to press without verifying their information.
“Regarding my view about corporate governance, it is also to ensure that this digital space we eradicate completely within the profession false news and fake news. People sometimes rush to want to post something without doing proper due diligence to verify what they are posting and ask yourself what damage would I do if they found out what I posted is not completely true.
“You must just be a bit more circumspect and know that indeed once it is out there, you cannot retrieve it back. That in itself puts a lot of professional competence on whoever is posting any information.”
Sanwo-Olu also seeks continuous support from the media for his administration. “I have enjoyed working with all of you and I am looking forward to still enjoying the remaining of my four years tenure and if all of you feel so compelling during the election, I will also not mind to be your governor again for another tenure,” he said.
Speaking earlier, the President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mustapha Isah, said digital technology has provided room for journalists to become a competitive and open source of income.
He urged media owners to embrace good corporate governance and accountability but noted that the role of scrutiny of the media should not be that of the government alone, adding that the media should not be threatened.