The assistant Parish priest of St. Finber’s Catholic church, Umuahia, Rev. Fr. Fortunatus Ike-Nwankuba has charged Journalists in Nigeria to remain the light of the nation in discharge of their duties.
This is even as he has demanded an end to the culture of non-payment of workers’ salaries by Nigerian leaders.
Nwankube stated this at NUJ press centre, Umuahia, Abia State as a guest preacher during the opening of the year prayer organised by the Abia State council of Nigeria Union of Journalists.
He warned Journalists to shun the lure of evil things that may rob them of their God-given mandates, even as he alerted the men of the pen profession against mortgaging their consciences in exchange for “friendship with evil leaders”.
He commended the efforts of the Journalists in defending the ordinary citizens and maintained that “if you fail to do your jobs of reporting the truth and defending the poor, where will our State and our country be?”
“When workers are not paid salaries and when pensioners are suffering, it is your duty as journalists to expose the evil. Don’t keep quiet. If you fail to report the evils in the society, who else can do it?, asked Nwankube.
Speaking to Journalists during the event, Abia State Commissioner for information, Dr. Eze Chikamnayo declared that ” Abia is not the worst State in Nigeria as being reported by some Journalists, especially those on social media.”
He called for a fair slate of reportage from Journalists and other media practitioners on the performances of Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, claiming that the Ikpeazu-led government was always put in the news for negative reasons. Chikamnayo pledged to work with Journalists in the development of Abia State.
Earlier in his address, the Chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists, Abia State council, Comrade Victor Ndukwe said the prayer program was a yearly affair used in thanking God for protecting Journalists in the year past and also used to pray for God’s guidance in the new year.
Ndukwe made it clear that Journalists in Abia State would continue in their responsibilities of projecting a good society, where the interests of the citizens would be protected.
