By Tony Adibe
A former Governor of old Anambra State, Senator Jim Nwobodo, has tasked journalists in the country on the need to always ensure they feed the public with verified and accurate information to avoid falsehood and misrepresentation of facts.
Senator Nwobodo said that to do otherwise, might mean that the media stand the risk of losing credibility in the eyes of the masses. Nwobodo, the former publisher of the defunct Satellite Newspapers, said that to avoid losing credibility, journalists must always be sure of the source and facts of their story before going to publish.
The former Minister of Youths and Sports gave the task at his country home Amechi Awkunanaw in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State during an interaction with newsmen. He was reacting to the report, which had gone viral that the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Enugu, Dr. Peter Mbah, presented a forged certificate of NYSC to INEC, therefore is not qualified to run for any elective office because of the purported fraud.
Jim Nwobodo (right) backing Dr Peter Mbah of the PDP to succeed Gov Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi in the forthcoming election
NewsBits recalls that Senator Nwobodo was the person who, during a press conference at his home last year, had presented Mbah as the preferred candidate of the PDP in the state. He had said that he persuaded Mbah to come out and contest for the governorship of Enugu State.
Also, NewsBits recalls that a certain group known as “Total Support for Rule of Law and Justice Initiative and Enugu Progressive Forum,” on Monday approached a media house in Abuja during when they granted a press conference and insisted that Mbah is not fit to contest.
Senator Nwobodo appealed to journalists not to indulge in falsehood or misrepresentation of fact in order not to mislead the public. He said that he was struck by the news and drew Mbah’s attention to the allegation, but the governorship candidate told him that he did his NYSC after graduation. He said: “When I heard the news, I was touched, and I called him, and he told me that it was not true. I urge you people to always report with facts.”
Nwobodo, who was surrounded during the press chat by party chieftains including the state PDP chairman and the campaign manager of Mbah campaign, Chief Ikeja Asogwa, urged the NUJ to sanction journalists that present false reports for ulterior motive.
But reminded that the story did not emanate from newsmen in Enugu, Nwobodo still emphasised that news should be verified before going public to avoid a colossal damage to people’s image. He regretted that Mbah could not come to his house for the press interaction to give the true fact of the supposed allegation.
