Facts have emerged on how a certain Imo Commissioner have used the just concluded election to settle old scores with one of the candidates leading to the emergence of a factional leadership in the state branch National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ).
Yours sincerely gathered that the weekend election scheduled earlier scheduled at the Port Harcourt road Secretariat of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) was suddenly moved to the new Secretariat of the Union at the new Owerri. The sudden change was communicated through the state’s radio broadcasting house, the IBC.
While majority of the voters massed at the original venue the foot soldiers of the commissioner represented by a factional leadership of the NUJ instructed them to move to the new venue where observers from the national secretariat of NAWOJ had been detailed to take charge contrary to their assignment as observers.
At the end of proceedings, Barr. Vivian Ottih, the incumbent chairperson emerged while Dorothy Nnaji was declared winner for the group fronted by the foot soldiers of the commissioner. This development has not gone down well with Imo journalists who have been faced with leadership challenge since three years.
Questions are being posed all over the place by concerned journalists on why government is bent on killing the media in the state. For three years it has been a tale of woe as the two factions in the leadership tussle have been moving in and out of court over the headship of the union.
In a comment, Ottih who emerged for a second tenure has absolved the government of any blame on the emergence of the factional leadership. She placed the matter on the door step of a certain commissioner who she accused of standing on her way to get even over an animosity the man had built up in his mind.
She claims that there is no rival leadership because she emerged through due process in an election properly conducted by the Electoral Committee duly set up according to the constitution of NUJ.
It is difficult to understand why this level of meddlesomeness by over bearing government officials who are bent on killing journalism practice in the state. Since the emergence of this government, journalists have never had it as good as a handful had played into the hands of over-zealous officials to stifle the practice.
It is also necessary to question the role of journalists who lend themselves as willing allies in the destruction of the noble profession so cherished and envied by many. It is suspected that the visiting Abuja officials sent to observe the elections may have received the proverbial ‘brown envelopes’ to sing the tunes of those who courted their favours by turning themselves into conductors.
It was reported that they had come with a ballot papers printed in Abuja and was lodged at the Ibis Royale Hotel suspected to belong to the relation of the said commissioner on a vendetta.
