Raheem Adedoyin Urges Media To Champion Good Governance, Constitutionality
A veteran journalist, Alhaji Raheem Adedoyin has urged communication scholars and media professionals in Nigeria to leverage their constitutional responsibilities to drive accountability and good governance in the country.
A statement made available to Team@orientactualmags.com noted that Alhaji Raheem Adedoyin, who is the Oloriewe of Oro kingdom, said this in his keynote speech during the virtual inauguration of the Kwara State Chapter of the Association of Communication Scholars and Professionals of Nigeria (ACSPN) over the weekend.
Noting that it was a pleasant duty to anchor the event, Alhaji Adedoyin added that despite the physical distance enforced by the virtual format, the inauguration ceremony holds powerful symbolism because it made distinguished scholars, respected practitioners from the journalism and communication fraternity come together.
He lauded the organizers for their ‘profound insight’ in initiating a project designed to foster a strong bond between communication academics and media professionals within Kwara State.
The former Kwara State Commissioner for Information, whose keynote topic was ‘Journalism, Communication and the Imperatives of Good Governance’, emphasized that society stands at a critical intersection where journalism, communication, and governance meet.
‘Journalism informs society, communication connects society, while governance directs society’ he said while underlining the distinct yet complementary roles the three forces play in shaping a stable democracy.
With the country’s general election less than four months away, Adedoyin reminded media practitioners of the unique weight of their profession, pointing directly to the Nigerian constitution. He cited Chapter 2, Section 22 under the ‘Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy’ which explicitly tasks the press, radio, television, and other mass media agencies with upholding government accountability to the citizens
The veteran journalist noted that it remains a point of pride and immense responsibility that no other human institution has been granted such an onerous constitutional mandate by the Nigerian grundnorm.
He urged the newly inaugurated chapter and the media at large to fiercely uphold this fundamental directive to ensure a thriving, transparent democracy.
Effective communication, he added, will ensure transparency while credible official channels, and media literacy will serve as a preventive measure and help to tackle misinformation and fake news.
‘It could, therefore, be easy for government to enunciate excellent policies, launch amazing public infrastructure and introduce far-reaching reforms, but if citizens do not understand what government is doing, why it is doing it and how those policies affect their lives, a disconnect is already established, paving room for misinformation, rumours and of course the big elephant -fake news!
It stands to reason that if governance is the art of translating public authority into public good, communication is the bridge that connects the two.
It is through communication that government explains itself to the governed, through journalism that society interrogates the exercise of power, and through dialogue that citizens become participants rather than spectators in governance.
While government takes its policies and initiatives to the people through diverse communication channels, citizens also express their needs through the same routes, with the media standing in as participant observer’ he said.
Journalism without responsibility, he added, can become only noise; communication without credibility can become propaganda while governance without accountability can become detached from the very people in whose name political authority is exercised-Team@orientactualmags.com Do you have any information you wish to share with us? Do you want us to cover your event or programme? Kindly send SMS to 08035023079, 08059100286, 09094171980 or get in touch via orientactualmag@gmail.com. Thank you
