By Amos Aar
THE DIRECTOR General (DG), Benue State Peace and Reconciliation Commission, Josephine Habba, has challenged journalists to carry out developmental and investigative reporting to build a peaceful nation.
Mrs Habba gave the task Tuesday when she paid a courtesy visit on the Benue State council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Makurdi to seek collaboration towards achieving peace in Benue State and Nigeria at large.
She asserted that journalism can mar or make any nation, depending on how it is practised since “journalists can change anything”.
Habba recalled that she was once honoured as “a friend of the media” by the NUJ in Benue State, hence she deemed it important to solicit their synergy to succeed in her new position and to reposition journalism in the state.
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While she stressed the importance of the media, Habba recalled how her non-governmental organisation, Jireh Doo Foundation, enjoyed media support twenty (20) years ago which facilitated the foundation to grow to a level that it has impacted many lives especially orphans.
She also tasked journalists on professionalism and follow-up reporting as she appreciated Mr Godwin Mark Iorpuu of Radio Benue, Makurdi, and Mrs Rose Ejembi, a former Benue state correspondent of The Sun Newspaper who is now in United Kingdom (UK) for doing follow-up reports that enabled her to get assistance to train two twin orphans who she picked at infant stage and are now 17 years old and in secondary school.
“One journalist that took interest in that story and followed me until she left this country is Rose Ejembi. She is in the UK today but periodically, she calls me and say, Mummy how are my children doing?
“These are records that get funding for journalists. This is just one example. There are many others”, Habba said.
She urged the state leadership of NUJ to regulate the system to prevent it from total collapse.
Habba, who discouraged the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in filing reports, also cautioned against plagiarism, adding that if journalists must use their colleagues’ reports, they must investigate from relevant sources to make their stories original and reliable.
She therefore stressed the need for training and retraining of journalists to upgrade their skills to keep up with the trends.
Responding on behalf of the state council, NUJ state chairperson, Comrade Vincent Nyinongu, commended Governor Hyacinth Alia for finding Josephine Habba worthy to head the commission and requested enabling environment in terms of funding to be created for journalists to be able to do investigative reporting successfully.
The NUJ chairman who assured Mrs Habba of collaboration and synergy thanked her for sparing time to pay the courtesy call on the council to encourage journalists to be professional in their job.
