International Press Centre (IPC) in collaboration with the European Union and CEMESO have engaged at least 65 journalists in Bayelsa State on the best practices towards delivery of effective and adequate coverage during the forthcoming November 11 governorship election in Bayelsa State.
The event which was held on August 8-9, 2023 at Southern Atlantic Hotels in Yenagoa, attracted journalists from the print and electronic media houses.
It also featured a roundtable discussion, lectures and interactive sessions with various resource persons including the representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Bayelsa State Police Command.
In a remark, the executive director, International Press Centre (IPC), Lanre Arogundade, said that the IPC believes the media has an important role to play in ensuring that citizens have credible information about the forthcoming governorship election in Bayelsa State.
He said, “The citizens make their choices on the basis of reliable information. But it is the journalists that work in the media houses.
We need to organize this programme for journalists to look at different aspects of our responsibility in the electoral process.
“We are interested in the issues of people who are generally underrepresented in the society who don’t have voices – the women, the young people. That is why we talk about inclusivity. We feel that if journalists would understand all these things, then they will be in a position to go out there and do stories that will be in the public interest.
“We are interested in knowing what the politicians want to do but we are more interested in journalists bringing to the attention of the politicians what the people really want them to do for them if they get elected. So that is the essence of this workshop.”
Arogundade said his expectations after the workshop is that between now and the governorship election, the media or the journalists in Bayelsa State will give more voice to the voiceless especially the women, and bring issues of interest of diverse segments in Bayelsa to the attention of politicians.
“We want to see accurate information, we don’t want disinformation or misinformation to take over the atmosphere such that people will not know what to believe and it is we journalists that will provide accurate and reliable information.
“Another thing is that we want the media or the journalists to give more public enlightenment on the electoral processes and this is what we call voter education. What are the INEC preparations? What are the preparations of security agents like the police for the election?
“How will the voting take place? How can people locate their polling units? Where people have problems or questions to ask about the election, to whom did they go? If we do that too, we will be contributing to credible election,” he said.
Commending the organisation, the Bayelsa State chairman, Comrade Samuel Numonengi, said it is a good one seeing that this kind of programme has been put in place, adding that the workshop is something various organisations should emulate.
“You heard what the police said about the safety tips and how journalists should dress while going out to cover election and some of the things they have to do. Also, from the side of INEC, more things that journalists can get to inform the public about. We expect more trainings like this for journalists before the Bayelsa State governorship election”, he said.
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