News
NGE Inducts 28 New Members …Re-Elects Adesina As President
Mr Nelson Chukwudi of The Tide Newspapers and Paul Damgbo of Rivers State Television (RSTV) were among 28 new members of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) inducted last Saturday into the elite club of Editors in the country, with a charge to comply with the Code of Ethics of the Journalism Profession and the Constitution of the NGE while ensuring absolute respect for rights and privileges of Nigerians in the discharge of their sacred duties.
Former President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Mr Bonnie Iwuoha, who gave the charge while performing the induction of the new members at a dinner/gala to mark the end of the 2015 Biennial Convention of the NGE in Lagos, last Saturday, admonished the new inductees to exhibit high sense of integrity and professionalism in the management of their various media organisations, just as he warned that the Guild would not take likely to any member who, by his or her conduct, brings the reputation of Nigerian Editors into disrepute.
Iwuoha reminded the new NGE members that their induction at a critical time of transition in the nation’s democratic experiment, demands that they bring their wealth of experience and expertise to bear in contributing to the promotion and sustenance of the nation’s democracy, and urged them to open new windows of interaction to improve relations with their older colleagues to ensure harmony and growth of the Guild.
The 28 new members, who swore oath of allegiance to the Guild as part of the induction, were given certificates of membership and a copy of the NGE Constitution each.
Earlier, Mr Femi Adeshina was on Saturday re-elected unopposed as the president of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE.
Adeshina, along with some executive members of the association, were returned unopposed during the 2015 Biennial Convention of the NGE held in Lagos at the weekend.
The other executive members re-elected were Garbadeen Mohammed as deputy president, Mr Suleiman Gaya, as vice president North, Mr Victor Agusiobo, as vice president East and Mr Steve Ayorinde as vice president West.
Others are, Asst. General Secretary, Mrs Mary Atolagbe; Treasurer, Mr Ogbang Akwaji and Social and Publicity Secretary, Mrs Funke Egbemode.
However, the post of national secretary was contested for by Mrs Victoria Ibanga and Mr Mustapha Isah.
Ibanga won the position with115 votes against Isah’s 103 votes.
A Deputy Editor-in-Chief with the News Agency of Nigeria, Malam Sani Adamu and Fred Fabor of Bayesa Broadcasting Service were among the seven persons who won membership of the Guild’s Standing Committee.
At the opening ceremony, President-elect, Gen Muhammadu Buhari, in a goodwill message, lauded the media for its roles in facilitating Nigeria peaceful and credible elections.
Represented by Vice President-elect, Porf Yemi Osinbajo, Buhari said that any meeting of the Guild of Editors was very important because of the role Editors play in nation-building.
He charged the media to monitor the activities of his incoming administration to ensure sustainable democracy.
Ex-information Minister, Tony Momoh stated that any editor who compromises in discharging his or her duties was a disgrace to journalism, and challenged editors to monitor the performance of government officials at all levels in line with their statutory obligations
Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State urged editors in the country to set agenda for political discussions that would guide future election campaigns.
Fashola, while receiving executive members of the Nigerian Guild of Editors in his Alausa office, said future elections would be more peaceful and free of tension, if they are actually focused on national burning issues.
The governor said that with issues-oriented campaigns and elections, even children would freely participate in future election campaigns and town hall meetings.
Reminiscing on the last general elections, Fashola said year 2014 and the last few months were quite eventful for the country, given the election threats and tension that engulfed the whole country.
According to Fashola, “Though, there is no nation without conflicts, but I think in all that has happened, one thing was missing in this election; we didn’t see our children there.
“One question I’ve continued to ask myself is that if this is about the future, why do our children not come to the campaigns or the town hall meetings?
“Why don’t we have sessions where school children on excursion begin to get involved? How many parents can allow the children to come, given the atmosphere that we’ve created? Yet, we say this is about tomorrow.
“This is one of the issues we all must reflect on, and I hope that it will manifest itself even in your relations.
“You (editors) know better than all of us what the issues are. And we expect that you will tackle, as well as confine the candidates who are seeking to lead and see who best articulates the issues,” he said.
The governor said that he disagreed with popular school of thought that argued during the election that there was no difference among the contending parties.
“I disagree with that and vehemently so. I can argue for a whole year and give you 101 reasons why the parties are different.
“I hear some people say that ‘nobody is talking about issues’. But security was an issue, corruption, economy were all issues. What do we want to talk about again, if those ones are not issues?
“So, we need to raise the bar in political discussion in order to douse the tension, which has been about people who really don’t want political discussions to be about issues.
“The British election is coming and all the parties have released their manifestos. So, the public are now looking at who has the best plans to reduce the debt because the issue in that election is economic.
“We must also begin to put issues forward and nobody can set the agenda for discussion better than you (editors) because you decide what goes into the news,” he said.
The President of the Guild, Mr Femi Adesina, earlier said that the 14-man Executive Committee team had come on a courtesy visit ahead of their Biennial Convention, which begins today in Lagos.
Adesina said that three of such conventions had held in Lagos in the last six years, “which confirms the State government’s affinity with the press.”
He appreciated Fashola’s contributions to the state and said that he would be sorely missed.
The NGE president said that Fashola had always been with the Guild at its conventions, either in person or represented, and thanked him for his support.
President Bola Tinubu has approved the nomination of four new members to the Governing Council of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, in a statement yesterday, said the appointment is to fill existing vacancies and strengthen the board’s capacity.
The statement said the approved nominees are Mr. Olusegun Omosehin of the National Insurance Commission and Engr. Wole Ogunsanya of the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria.
Tinubu also endorsed the nomination of Sam Onyechi, who represents the Nigerian Content Consultative Forum and Barrister Owei Oyanbo from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
The President encouraged the new members to leverage their expertise and dedication to enhance local content development within Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
It added, “The nominations arose from the exit of previous institutional representatives from the Governing Council.
“The NCDMB Governing Council, established under Section 69 of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010, comprises representatives from key institutions.
“These include the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria, the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, the Nigerian Content Consultative Forum, and the National Insurance Commission.”
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has announced plans to construct additional hostels, rehabilitate roads, and enhance power supply in the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT).
NDDC’s Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, disclosed this during a visit to the commission’s headquarters in Port Harcourt, yesterday by a delegation from the UNIPORT’s Governing Council.
Ogbuku stated that the NDDC had committed to upgrading facilities at UNIPORT as part of efforts to foster partnership with educational institutions across the Niger Delta.
According to him, the implementation of additional projects at the university forms part of a broader strategy to improve education standards in the region.
“Aside from the construction of new hostel blocks and installation of a 300 KVA solar inverter system, the NDDC will also facilitate more projects in the university.
“The commission will also deploy its engineers to assess the condition of UNIPORT’s roads and hostels for potential rehabilitation,” he said.
Ogbuku noted that upon completion, the projects would add to various initiatives previously undertaken by the commission at the university.
“These and other projects reflect our commitment to actualising President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the Niger Delta region,” he added.
He reaffirmed the NDDC’s dedication to fostering development and strengthening partnerships across the region.
Earlier, Sen. Mao Ohuanbunwa, Chairman of UNIPORT’s Governing Council, who led the delegation commended the current leadership of the NDDC for its achievements in accelerating development in the Niger Delta.
He highlighted the university’s infrastructural challenges, noting that it lacked adequate facilities to accommodate its growing student population, and appealed for the NDDC’s support in addressing the shortfall.
“Currently, UNIPORT has a total student population of about 50,000, while its hostel accommodation capacity can only cater for 5,000 students.
“We therefore urge the NDDC to assist in the construction of additional hostels, improve transportation facilities, and facilitate the acquisition of gas turbines to enhance power supply for our students,” Ohuanbunwa pleaded.
The Vice Chancellor of UNIPORT, Prof. Owunari Georgewill, commended NDDC for its impactful projects across the Niger Delta and extended an invitation to the commission to participate in the institution’s forthcoming 50th anniversary celebrations.
The Senate has rejected a motion to rename the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters after the former chairman of the defunct National Electoral Commission, late Prof Humphrey Nwosu.
Nwosu presided over the June 12, 1993, presidential election, which was truncated by the former military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (rtd).
The election which was won by the late business mogul, Chief MKO Abiola, was adjudged to be the freest and fairest in the electoral history of Nigeria.
The motion to rename INEC after Nwosu was re-sponsored by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe yesterday after lawmakers threw it out last Wednesday.
Abaribe called for posthumous national honours to be conferred on Nwosu in recognition of his role in Nigeria’s democratic evolution.
However, the proposal sparked a heated debate once again, with lawmakers deeply divided over Nwosu’s legacy.
Senator Osita Ngwu acknowledged that Nwosu operated under a military regime, which restricted his ability to announce the results.
He argued that “there was no way he would have announced the results with a gun to his head. That doesn’t change the fact that some of us see him as a hero.”
Senator Austin Akobundu, however, described it as most uncharitable for lawmakers to dismiss Nwosu’s contributions, insisting that he deserved a place in Nigeria’s hall of honour.
On the other hand, several senators like Senator Jimoh Ibrahim dismissed the idea outright, questioning why the Senate should honour someone who failed to announce the results insisting that “nothing should be named after him”.
Senator Cyril Fasuyi argued that history does not reward efforts, but only results.
“As long as he did not announce the result, whether under duress or not, I am against naming INEC headquarters after him,” he submitted.
Also, Senator Sunday Karimi criticised Nwosu for lacking the courage to speak out, while Senator Afolabi Salisu warned that immortalising him would undermine the memory of MKO Abiola, the widely accepted winner of the June 12, 1993, annulled election.
“Any attempt to do anything beyond a one-minute silence is to rubbish Abiola’s legacy,” he tendered.
After intense deliberation, most senators rejected the motion through a voice vote.
They, however, agreed to honour him with a one-minute silence and extend condolences to his family, effectively dismissing the other prayers to immortalise Nwosu.