- Safiu Kehinde
Former National Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Lai Olurode, has warned against the advocacy on government subsidy for the media industry.
Olurode held that subsidising the media will compromise practitioners.
He gave the warning during his address at the Lateef Jakande Annual Memorial Lecture organised by the Nigerian Guild of Editors on Wednesday.
Reacting to the subsidy proposal by the Managing Director of Punch Newspaper, Joseph Adeyeye, the ex-INEC’s National Chairman called for a reflection on the consequences of the subsidy on media practice and Press freedom.
“How will this foster media freedom? Will this not be a constraint? Because from what he said now, if you don’t pay your boys that you sent to the field, they go in there and once they get to the government house, they find something for them- either as package allowance or whatever.
“But all the same, it is the same effect. You have filled in the gap. Then what happens to competition? What happens to pluralisation?
“That is what the President has been struggling to do which is not easy at all. He is trying to do away with subsidy. Let’s look at the consequences on media practice and freedom of the media and if this will not fade the pen from being critical.” He said.
Speaking on the training of journalists, Olurode called for the investment in training that will give them the Nigerian character.
This, according to him, will make them to practice journalism as a Nigerian journalist who will be able identify and avoid untouchable things that can portray the image of the country’s leaders on a bad note at the global stage.
“Can we say that if you come across a Nigerian journalist abroad, you come across a British and Amercian journalists abroad, you can say that this is a well-trained journalist.
“In the colonial days, when the British were sending the colonial administrators, especially under Lord Lugard, the only reason why they decided to send them was not because they have been trained anywhere. But they said they were products of the British public school. And for that, they can go to any part of the jungle of Africa and be an effective administrator. Do we have that invested in our journalists?
“The kind of training that can give them the Nigerian character that will make them to practice journalism not just as a journalist but as a Nigerian journalist.
“There are untouchable things that they must not talk about- about Nigeria disintegrating, about abusing leadership, criminalising leadership in the country.
“Or what you see most is either they are Efik, Urohobo, or whatever. These are very important. What are untouchables for the Nigerian journalist that no matter what, no matter the leader of the country whether he is Yoruba, Hausa, Fulani, Urohobo, Fulani, or Efik, you must not say these about such Nigerians because they are your leaders.
“And if you bastardise your leaders, if you criminalise them, the world will not respect them.” He added.