Plateau cautions against mischief journalism

By Sadiq Abubakar
Maiduguri

Plateau state government, yesterday, cautioned journalists practising in the state against “speculative and mischief journalism.”
The Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Muhammed Nazif, gave the advice when he visited the zonal office of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Jos.
The visit was in continuation of Nazif’s familiarisation tour of media formations in the state.
The commissioner expressed “deep willingness’’ to work with the media, and called for a mutually rewarding partnership that would shore up the fortunes of Plateau.

He reminded journalists of the crises Plateau had gone through over the years, and urged them to minimise any action that could bring back the bad days.
The commissioner also spoke on efforts to transform the state-owned newspaper, The Nigeria Standard into a daily newspaper with a national coverage “so as to revive its glorious days.”
He said: “I have visited the Plateau Publishing Company and found the place in a very sorrowful state. The machines there are outdated, the past government purchased and installed some very sophisticated machines that are even above the capacity of the Nigeria Standard, but the machines have not been put into full use because some “smaller components have not been installed.”

Responding, NAN Zonal Manager, Mr. Ephraims Sheyin, thanked the Commissioner for the visit and promised to continue to partner with the state government toward a stable, progressive and crisis-free Plateau.
Sheyin advised the commissioner to ensure easy access to information to avoid a situation where newsmen would seek for other less reliable sources to clarify contending issues.
“The government should also be quick to react to issues of any misrepresentation to avoid a situation where the wrong impression will go viral, especially in view of the speed of information flow in the social media.” (NAN)

the United Nations at the 59th Commission on status of Women in (March 2015) and 70th Gender Assembly in (September 2015) examined the progress of women issues and became committed to taking more concrete actions to bridge the gaps that had hitherto hindered women and girls from attaining gender equality.
She noted that the theme for the 2015 16 -Days of Activism is:”Peace in the Home to Peace in the World: Make Education Safe for All”.