Ahead of the off-cycle gubernatorial election in Edo State, which holds September 21, 2024 journalists and media practitioners have been urged to prioritise ethical practice and professionalism as mechanisms for ensuring credible and fair poll.

They also reiterated the need for journalists to avoid reports devoid of violence, disinformation and misinformation. This charge was given at a media dialogue and stakeholders’ interface convened by the International Press Centre (IPC).

IPC Executive Director, Lanre Arogundade, cautioned journalists against reporting biases and sentiments. He also urged them to eschew favoritism.

He further suggested media professionals must shape their narratives around credible reporting and challenge claims made by politicians during campaigns.

He added journalists must interrogate what politicians intend to do if elected; their previous achievements in government and shortcomings of their opponents.

He further tasked the media to test the authenticity and value of the politicians’ claims by working together with other relevant stakeholders which includes the electorates, non-governmental organisations, other media practitioners and others, to identify issues that are pertinent to the electorate.

Speaking in a similar vein, Director of Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), Nnimmo Bassey, argued every election is about people and the media is expected to set agenda for the candidates on how to tailor their policies in favour of the citizens.

He, however, frowned at refusal of the politicians to always speak about their manifestos, saying this has become a common phenomenon among them.

Speaking further, he said it is the duty of the journalists to mandate political office aspirants and holders to collectively make demands from them in order to achieve credible election and a shared dividend of democracy.

To him, “the election is about people, and that’s why who gets the mandate to the state house is really important. The governorship candidates are not speaking about their manifestoes and that’s why there’s no difference between them. It is the duty of journalists to hold them accountable for what they are doing. What we do in our units is more critical to the outcome of an election in the state.”

Bassey, who is also an environmentalist, condemned the negligence of government to prioritise environmental issues, noting that journalists are expected to put them on their toes in this regard as it plays crucial role in the sustainability of governance and good leadership.

Engaging the journalists in a session on newsroom scenarios, brainstorming sessions, the stories to tell, how to tell them, as well as digital tools and applications to tell the stories, Director, Journalism Clinic, Taiwo Obe, encouraged journalists to be knowledgeable about their environments, adding that it will enhance their reporting election.

He also challenged participants to further hone their questioning skills when interacting with public officeholders on the promises they make to the public, noting that seeking public interest must be embedded in their questions to them.

He advised, “it is what journalists know that determines what they report, knowledge is the first thing every journalist must have. Questions are significant to everything. Journalists are expected to ask pressing questions and know the critical determinants of the election in and the best approach is to be familiar with the available tools for best practice.”

Obe also guided journalists on how to create engaging newsrooms, in which participants were divided into different newsroom settings to generate potential questions journalists could use during the elections.

IPC is implementing Component 4: Support to Media of the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EUSDGNII) project funded by the European Union.